Texas Governor Announces Reduced Capacity at Outdoor Stadiums

On Thursday, Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued an official order- outdoor stadiums in the state will officially start allowing 25% capacity at sporting events.

As of May 28th, this is the first SEC state to make an official announcement regarding capacity numbers for sporting events. In addition to this announcement, Gov. Abbott also announced that starting in June, professional sports teams will be allowed to begin play.

While the Dallas Cowboys and Houston Texans will be allowed to start summer minicamps, the Dallas Stars of the NHL will start their journey for the special 24-team Stanley Cup Playoffs. Since the MLBPA is still in negotiations with the MLB, it is unknown whether the Houston Astros and the Texas Rangers will be allowed to resume their preparations.

If this trend continues and Alabama Governor Kay Ivey allows 25% capacity for football games in the fall, Bryant-Denny Stadium could expect to hold around 25 thousand of its usual 101 thousand capacity.

After Joseph Goodman of AL.com reported on May 20th that “more than 10 people” working on Bryant-Denny Stadium tested positive for COVID-19, rumors of delayed completion on construction spread among the state. While Goodman reported that construction was supposed to be completed by the home opener on September 12th, the slowed construction could cause a later completion date.

With the new developments about capacity in outdoor stadiums around the Southeastern Conference, delayed completion of construction might not affect crowd numbers as much as anticipated. 25 thousand fans could easily fit in the lower bowl of Bryant-Denny without interfering with areas being renovated.