Nashville SC to open Nissan Stadium to near full capacity

NASHVILLE, TN – Nashville SC announced Friday that the club will open Nissan Stadium to near full capacity on Sunday, May 23 against Austin FC. Following Nashville Mayor John Cooper’s reopening announcement, including the news that over 40% of the Metro Nashville population has been vaccinated, the new seating plan at Nissan Stadium has been approved by Major League Soccer. The full press release can be read below:

Nashville Soccer Club announced today that following Mayor John Cooper’s recent reopening announcement, and with approval from Major League Soccer, fans will be allowed at Nissan Stadium in a near full capacity setting starting on Sunday, May 23, when Nashville SC hosts Austin FC on FS1 and FOX Deportes.

Starting May 23, the lower bowl at Nissan Stadium will open in near full capacity for Nashville SC matches, allowing the majority of Season Ticket Members, who were originally relocated due to COVID-19 restrictions, to return to their original seat locations in a non-socially distanced environment. Per MLS’ COVID-19 restrictions, seats located in the lower bowl behind designated media positions and player areas, such as benches, tunnels and warm-up areas will remain unavailable.

In accordance with last month’s announcement from Metro Public Health and per MLS’ COVID-19 protocol update, starting May 23, masks will no longer be required while outdoors at Nissan Stadium. However, face covering is strongly encouraged in this new layout.

For those Season Ticket Members who prefer to remain in a masked and socially distanced environment as the City of Nashville reopens, Nashville SC will work with them to provide alternative seating options where social distancing and masks will be mandatory.

In addition to welcoming Season Ticket Members, single match tickets for the 8 p.m. CT national television match against MLS’ newest expansion club will go on sale at 2 p.m. CT today at NashvilleSC.com/Tickets. Additional on sale dates for future matches will be determined at a later date.

“As we welcome more fans into Nissan Stadium, we are committed to finding the right balance between allowing people to return to soccer in as normal an environment as possible, whilst at the same time respecting that some people’s choices may differ from others. Equally we have to work with the space and options available to us to try to provide as much choice as possible within a changing environment,” said Nashville SC CEO Ian Ayre. 

Nashville SC will continue to review these procedures on a game by game basis and will collaborate with local health authorities, MLS and Nissan Stadium in the best interest of attending soccer fans as new protocols become available throughout the reopening of the city.

Fans interested in securing their seats at Nissan Stadium for Nashville’s first match in a near full capacity setting against Austin FC at 8 p.m. CT on May 23 can visit NashvilleSC.com/Tickets. For more information on Nashville SC’s matchday policies, visit  https://www.nashvillesc.com/matchday and follow the club’s social media channels on InstagramFacebook, and Twitter.

Author: Ben Wrightis the Director of Soccer Content and a Senior MLS Contributor for Broadway Sports covering Nashville SC and the US National Team. Previously Ben was the editor and a founder of Speedway Soccer, where he has covered Nashville SC and their time in USL before journeying to Major League Soccer since 2018. Raised in Louisville, KY Ben grew up playing before a knee injury ended his competitive career. When he is not talking soccer he is probably producing music, drinking coffee or hanging out with his wife and kids. Mastodon

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