Attendance will be drastically reduced at Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium in 2020, as the team announced it would be allowing no more than 14,000 at events amid the coronavirus pandemic, with the potential for less depending on circumstances. The reduction was announced alongside the team’s decision to halt all ticket sales, refund single-game purchases, and defer season ticket memberships to 2021.

“To offer a proper level of safety for fans who want to attend games, a reduction in capacity is necessary,” stated Ravens president Dick Cass. “We are disappointed that this will be a disruption for many ticket buyers, but we have an obligation to our fans and our community to keep M&T Bank Stadium as safe as possible.”

The 14,000 fan cap – which the team paints as a best-case scenario – is a fraction of the 71,000 capacity at the venue.

Similar to the Kansas City Chiefs, the Ravens are being proactive about the challenge of sorting through what may be a drastically limited season, attendance-wise. Rather than give existing season ticket holders the option of deferring their tickets without penalty, the team is doing it for them. Once the number of fans allowed to attend is determined, the team will offer Personal Seat License owners the first chance to purchase tickets to those games.

“With over 62,000 season tickets already sold, there is no equitable way to accommodate in a limited stadium capacity all PSL Owners who are interested in maintaining season tickets for 2020,” stated senior vice president of ticket sales and operations Baker Koppelman. “Under these unusual circumstances, it’s best to simplify the ticket sales process and allow fans to decide which games they want to attend, while giving our PSL Owners priority in accessing tickets.”

Individual teams and cities are being allowed to determine their attendance levels in 2020, rather than a league-wide approach, but it is appearing more and more likely that attendance will be greatly limited amid the coronavirus pandemic. It is already known that the first several rows close to the field will be tarped off at all stadiums – allowing for distance between on-field personnel as well as advertorial signage for television cameras.

vegas.com advertisement