As the Dallas Cowboys make final preparations for the 2020 NFL season, owner Jerry Jones is making it clear that fans will be part of the atmosphere at AT&T Stadium this year.
While several NFL teams won’t allow fans to attend games at their stadiums this season, Jones told reporters Wednesday the Cowboys intend on playing in front of their home crowd when the season kicks off.
Dallas Cowboys plan to have fans at AT&T Stadium
On the same day the Washington Football Team announced it won”t allow fans to attend games at FedEx Field, the face of the Cowboys made it clear many will still be welcome at AT&T Stadium.
The 77-year-old credited the unique design of the stadium and some of its features as factors that led to the decision. AT&T Stadium is three million square feet, enabling the Cowboys to use its massive size to follow Texas’ social-distancing guidelines.
The Cowboys led the NFL in average home attendance (90,929) and total attendance (727,432) during the 2019 season, according to ESPN. Jones said the team would release specifics for the adjusted stadium capacity at a later date.
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Will NFL fans be able to attend games this season?
The New York Giants, New York Jets, Las Vegas Raiders and the Washington Football Team have all announced fans won’t be allowed to attend their games this season. However, many other NFL teams will still welcome people into their stadiums.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic and social-distancing guidelines, the New England Patriots, Green Bay Packers and Baltimore Ravens have reduced their stadium capacities this year.
It’s expected to have major ramifications for the entire league with billions of dollars in potential revenue lost due to a steep drop in ticket sales and game-day revenue.
Fortunately, the NFL is already exploring new ways to generate money to avoid a steep drop in the 2021 salary cap. The league has considered changing the NFL schedule to include more games on Saturdays, it expanded the playoff field and teams are being given creative freedom to increase their own revenue.
While things might be very different this year, the NFL remains very confident a full 2020 season will be played.