Sunday, December 15, 2019

Ranking NFL Stadia

Sports websites love to publish rankings. ESPN has a new one every day. I’m a sucker for stadium rankings and usually post one every year (much too often for serious journalists).

Most NFL stadiums are palaces. A few stand out above the rest (Atlanta, Dallas, Minnesota) and a few are inadequate (Oakland) but most can be considered above average. I am partial to domes, but many open air stadiums are almost interchangeable (CLE, CIN, BALT, NE, BUFF, NY, PITT, PHIL,  DEN, TENN, JAX, TB).

Sportsdrop.com published a ranking in August. These rankings included stadium experience: a loud, full stadium ranked higher than a mostly-empty stadium housing a losing team. That’s too subjective. Note my more accurate ranking at the bottom.

I added seating capacity, year opened, and whether the stadium has hosted a Super Bowl.

31. 56057 1966 Oakland Alameda Stadium
30. 82000 1997 FedEx Field Redskins
29. 27000 2003 Dignity Health Sports Park Chargers
28. 71608 1973 New Era Field Bills
27. 65326 1987 Hard Rock Stadium Dolphins SB
26. 67895 1999 First Energy Stadium Browns
25. 69132 1995 TIAA Bank Field Jaguars SB
24. 65515 2000 Paul Brown Stadium Bengals
23. 78500 1923 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Rams SB
22. 69143 1999 Nissan Stadium Titans
21. 61500 1924 Soldier Field Bears
20. 66829 2002 Gillette Stadium Patriots
19. 68500 2014 Levi’s Stadium 49ers SB
18. 65890 1998 Raymond James Stadium Buccaneers SB
17. 69596 2003 Lincoln Financial Field Eagles
16. 65000 2002 Ford Field Lions
15. 71008 1998 M&T Bank Stadium Ravens
14. 75523 1996 Bank of America Stadium Panthers
13. 73208 1975 Mercedes Benz Superdome Saints SB
12. 63400 2006 State Farm Stadium Cardinals SB
11. 82500 2010 MetLife Stadium Giants Jets SB
10. 68400 2001 Heinz Field Steelers
9. 76416 1972 Arrowhead Stadium Chiefs
8. 81441 1957 Lambeau Field Packers
7. 67000 2008 Lucas Oil Stadium Colts
6. 76125 2001 Empower Field at Mile High
5. 72220 2002 NRG Stadium Texans SB
4. 66655 2016 US Bank Stadium Vikings SB
3. 71000 2017 Mercedes Benz Stadium Falcons SB
2. 69000 2002 CenturyLink Field Seahawks
1. 80000 2009 AT&T Stadium Cowboys SB

My ranking: (1) Atlanta, (2) new LA stadium, (3) new Las Vegas stadium, (4) Minnesota, (5) Dallas, (6) Indianapolis, (7) Phoenix, (8) Houston, (9) San Francisco, (10) Detroit, (11) Kansas City, (12) Green Bay, (13) Seattle, (14) New York, (15) Chicago, (16) Denver, (17) New England, (18) Pittsburgh, (19)  Charlotte, (20) Miami, (21) Baltimore, (22) Cleveland, (23) Nashville, (24) New Orleans, (25) Cincinnati, (26) Philadelphia, (27) Washington, (28) Tampa, (29) Jacksonville, (30) LA Coliseum, (31) Buffalo, (32) Oakland, (33) Chargers.

Note: my company's aluminum has been made into handrails used in Mercedes Benz Stadium, the new stadium in Vegas, State Farm Arena, SunTrust Park, Sanford Stadium, the Missouri Tigers stadium, and others.
 
 

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