There are a number of wildfires raging throughout California right now and one of them could affect the upcoming game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
While the game doesn’t face an imminent threat of postponement or relocation, there are some concerns about air quality in the Los Angeles area. Poor air quality could certainly impact the players. As of Saturday, the Bobcat Fire had grown to 91,000 acres and is only 15% contained according to the U.S. Forest Service.
The L.A. Public Health Department recently extended their smoke advisory through Saturday, Sept. 19. The Air Quality Index forecast on Sunday shows a 130 AQI according to IQAir. This level of air quality is described as “unhealthy for sensitive groups.”
For the NFL to relocate a game, they’d have to see an AQI reading of over 200 for a significant period of time according to the NFL operations manual. IQAir qualifies readings over AQI 150 as unhealthy, and readings over 200 would qualify as very unhealthy.
Now, SoFi stadium isn’t an outdoor stadium in the sense that Arrowhead Stadium is. It has a roof, but the sides and ends of the building open up to the outdoors. SoFi Stadium has been dubbed as the first major indoor-outdoor stadium since its inception due to its unique design. That same unique design also brings the possibility that harmful air from the fires could enter the stadium.
The Rams-Cowboys game played at Sofi Stadium in Week 1 faced similar concerns, but ultimately the two teams were able to play. They also didn’t appear any worse for wear due to the air quality. It’s certainly something to monitor throughout the game, though. Poor air quality could lead to both teams having to sub players out more frequently than they’d like.
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