[a] When a new tartan track was laid out at the oval for the country's initial hosting of the 1981 Southeast Asian Games, the venue became a hub for athletics and the football pitch's condition slowly deteriorated.

[3] It eventually became unsuitable for international matches which meant the Philippine national team would have to play their home games at an alternate venue.

In 2010, the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) partnered with the De La Salle University to refurbish the stadium's football pitch.

[5] The renovation was completed in 2011 and was first used for the game of Azkals against Sri Lanka in 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers round on July 3, 2011 which was the first international football game held at the stadium in the decades,[5][6] where the Philippine national team won 4-0 overall.

[4][7][6] However, the pitch (which was a natural grass) deteriorated again due to the number of football and rugby events,[8] that led the PSC to convert it into an artificial turf in 2014.

One of the first events held in the stadium is the football tournament of the 1934 Far Eastern Championship Games.

During the government's "Hatid Tulong" program, the stadium was used as the designated temporary holding place for Locally Stranded Individuals (LSIs).