The Kansas City Chiefs have one of the loudest stadiums in the NFL, but that’s something the Houston Texans probably do not have to worry about when they travel to Arrowhead Stadium next month for the opening game of the NFL season. The Chiefs announced on Monday that the capacity at Arrowhead will be cut to 22% to start the season, meaning that less than 20,000 fans will be allowed to attend the team on Thursday night, September 10th.
The normal capacity at Arrowhead Stadium is 76,416, but for the NFL kickoff game, that number will be reduced to 16,812. The decision was made so that fans can follow current social distances and other health protocols that have been put in place due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
The Chiefs are one of several teams around that NFL that have announced their attendance policies for early season. For the 2020 season, the NFL is letting each team dictate its own capacity this year with the expectation that the final number will be based on local health rules and protocols that are in place for the coronavirus pandemic. While some teams – such as the Chiefs – are welcome fans, there are other teams (such as the Saints, Falcons and Raiders) that will have zero fans present for the first month of the season.
The Chiefs will hold this capacity for their first three home games and then re-evaluate. Tickets for these games, which are likely to be nearly unavailable, will go on sale August 24th. In addition to the Texans, the Chiefs will also play the Patriots (Week 4) and Raiders (Week 5).
The fact that those three teams do not have to deal with a sell-out audience is definitely an advantage and that is because Arrowhead is one of the loudest stadiums in the world. Back in 2014, Chiefs fans set the Guinness World Record for loudest fans in an open-air stadium.
One thing that will be interesting to look at is whether a reduced capacity – and thus, reduced noise – will have an impact on a team’s home field advantage. For example, Kansas City has been one of the toughest places to play the past two years with the Chiefs going 12-4 at home since the start of the 2018 season. However, if there are only 16,812 fans present, it will be interesting to see if the Chiefs lose their home field edge, which could potentially shake things up for bookies trying to create the odds in Vegas. As of Monday, the Chiefs were a 10-point favorite over the Texans.
For fans attending games, the biggest difference for them this year – in addition to the small audience size – will be the fact that they will have to wear a mask. The NFL has already announced that it will require all fans to wear a mask this year.
