Getty Nissan Stadium in Nashville on September 1, 2020.
On Thursday the Tennessee Titans and Nashville Mayor John Cooper announced that fans will be allowed to attend Titans games this season, beginning with the October 4 game against the visiting Pittsburgh Steelers.
However, there are a few caveats. Mayor Cooper said that Nissan Stadium will be permitted to host up to 10% of the stadium’s 69,143 capacity, which would amount to approximately 6,900 fans.
Nissan Stadium Safe Stadium Guidelines
The Titans are implementing a comprehensive health and safety plan to facilitate hosting fans, with key components that include:
Socially distant seating pods accommodating 1-6 people
Mobile ticketing and parking
Hand sanitizing stations throughout the stadium
Individually wrapped concession items
Elimination of all smoking and vaping areas
Health screenings and personal protective equipment for all stadium employees
The stadium has also been outfitted with touchless fixtures in bathrooms, as well as touchless water fountains. It will also be mandated that fans cover their faces at all times, except when eating or drinking.
Fan attendance at Nissan Stadium will be allowed to increase as the season progresses, with capacity permitted to rise to 12.5% for Tennessee’s October 11 game against the Buffalo Bills and to 15% for the October 18 game against the Houston Texans. Attendance might be allowed to increase to 21% in November and December, “the maximum capacity our facility can accommodate under current [CDC] guidelines,” said Titans team president Burke Nihill on Thursday.
Tickets Available For Steelers-Titans?
It may be a challenge for Pittsburgh Steelers fans to take over Nissan Stadium, as they have been known to do in seasons past.
According to Titans chief marketing and revenue officer Gil Beverly, tickets will be made available only to season ticket holders, at least initially. If any tickets are left over, the general public would have an opportunity to purchase them.
The Steelers play the Titans on October 4 at Noon Central time.
The team played its regular season opener against the New York Giants in an empty MetLife Stadium, by order of New Jersey’s governor.
Fans at Heinz Field?
As for the prospect of the Steelers playing in front of hometown fans at Heinz Field, the team announced in August that no fans would be allowed to attend the team’s first two home games, and that if and when fans are allowed in 2020, there would likely be a mask requirement.
There are “no plans at this time” for fans to attend Steelers games at Heinz Field, said Pennsylvania Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine last Friday. “Because of mitigation efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19, there will not be fans for the Pittsburgh Steelers home games and Philadelphia Eagles home games,” Levine said during a September 11 news conference in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
The Steelers have announced that they will open Heinz Field for voting in November, becoming the first NFL team to sign on to the non-partisan Election Super Centers Project. Heinz Field has the capacity to handle hundreds of polling booths while allowing for appropriate social distancing.
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