The 2020 NFL schedule is out and the plan is to proceed with the regular season as usual, beginning in early September. That said, there are a thousand questions that need to be answered between now and then. Near the top of the list is if teams will be allowed to have fans in their stadiums or if the pandemic will make that impossible.
Panthers owner David Tepper recently suggested we could possibly see some fans in stadiums this year, but they will not be at full capacity.
If the league has to go forward without fans in the stands, it would obviously cost a great deal of revenue.
Just how much depends on the team and the stadium. According to an estimate by Forbes, Carolina could lose $143 million if there are no fans at Bank of America Stadium this year, which is based on 2018 revenue. The Cowboys would be hit hardest by a fanless-season. Forbes says Dallas could lose $621 million this year.
There’s nothing wrong with hoping that fans get to show up for games like usual, but it’s better to be safe than sorry. Recent reporting in the Wall Street Journal suggests that having stadiums full of people could have a superspreader effect, which is worth avoiding no matter how much money it costs.
The league is preparing for these potential losses by changing the rules for how much debts teams are allowed to hold. Owners voted to increase that limit from $350 million to $500 million, per Sports Business Daily.
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