Tag: stadiums

Apr 29, 2021; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; An Indianapolis Colts fan pose for a picture before the 2021 NFL Draft at First Energy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Colts become final NFL team approved for full capacity in 2021

Posted on | by Field Level Media

All 32 NFL teams now have clearance to host crowds at full capacity for the 2021 season.

The Indianapolis Colts announced Tuesday they received approval from the Marion County Public Health Department to host games at 100 percent capacity for the upcoming season. Lucas Oil Stadium seats 63,000.

In May, NFL executive vice president Peter O’Reilly told reporters that 30 of the league’s 32 teams had received approval from state or local health authorities to return to full-capacity stadiums in the coming season, after the COVID-19 pandemic forced teams to restrict fan access to games in 2020. Some teams did not host fans at all in 2020, while others operated with a drastically reduced capacity.

The two teams that still needed approval were the Colts and the Denver Broncos. Denver announced earlier this month that it had been cleared for full capacity.

“We were fortunate to be able to host fans in 2020 through the pandemic, and those fans were as loud and proud as ever,” Colts owner and CEO Jim Irsay said in a statement. “But game days at Lucas Oil Stadium are like family reunions, and it wasn’t quite the same without our entire Colts family alongside us.”

–Field Level Media

Jan 3, 2021; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams plays their final home game of the season against the Arizona Cardinals in an empty SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports

Roger Goodell: Expectation is for full stadiums in fall

Posted on | by Field Level Media

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said he anticipates packed venues across the league this fall.

“All of us in the NFL want to see every one of our fans back,” Goodell said Tuesday. “Football is simply not the same without the fans and we expect to have full stadiums in the 2021 season.”

Games went on in 2020 in either empty stadiums or those with fans numbering well below capacity because of the threat of COVID-19. But with the U.S. poised to administer three million vaccinations every day, Goodell is optimistic.

Further, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told ESPN’s “First Take” earlier this month that there is reason for a positive outlook.

“I hope that by the time we get to the end of the summer, the beginning of the fall, we’ll be very close to what we could consider ‘normal,’” Fauci said.

NFL total attendance in 2020 was 1.2 million, down from nearly 17 million in 2019. Most of the fans attended stadiums in Texas and Florida, where state regulations allowed greater capacity.

–Field Level Media