Super Bowl capacity at Allegiant Stadium to be among smallest in history

More than 60,000 fans will fill in the $2 billion facility for the game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers, according to an NFL spokesman.

That would be the smallest capacity crowd in the history of the NFL’s title game — outside of the 24,835 who attended COVID-19-restricted Super Bowl 55 in Tampa, Florida. Capacity for that Feb. 7, 2021, game was limited at 25,000.

The first Super Bowl in 1967 saw the lowest capacity turnout with 61,946 fans, according to NFL records.

A regular-season Raiders game features 62,500 fixed seats, expandable to a 65,000-person capacity when standing room only tickets are included. The stadium’s capacity was touted by officials during its planning and construction process to be expandable to 72,000 seats for a Super Bowl.

Reasons behind the fan seating reductions are additional seating areas being used for domestic and international media members and space used to construct platforms, to provide additional camera and security positions, according to the NFL.

CBS Sports will use 165 cameras inside and outside Allegiant Stadium to broadcast the game to its global audience. The Super Bowl is a designated Special Event Assessment Rating 1 event, which is the highest level on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s scale. That means it requires extensive support from federal agencies along with state and local law enforcement.

The mega weekend in Las Vegas is expected to draw 330,000 visitors, generating up to $1.1 billion. It could be the biggest special event in Las Vegas history.

Allegiant Stadium drew over 23,000 fans for the opening night of Super Bowl 58 week on Monday and was the first time the fan-friendly event was held in the game’s hosting stadium.

An earlier version of this story included an incorrect number for the 2021 Super Bowl.

Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on X.