The new Denver Broncos stadium will have a retractable roof.
That, per a release from the Denver Broncos themselves, which includes information in Burnham Yard being the preferred location for the new venue.
A roof over the new stadium will be something football fans have never experienced in the Centennial State and could change the game here forever.
New Denver Broncos stadium will have a retractable roof
Putting a retractable roof over the new Denver Broncos stadium will mean the Mile High City could possibly host a Super Bowl in the near future.
But, it could also change the face of football in Denver forever.
The pros are clear from an ownership standpoint.
First and foremost, having a roof over the new stadium will mean the ability to host a Super Bowl. That’s something that Denver could never do in the past because we’re a cold-weather city in January/February. The league prefers to have their biggest, championship game played on a neutral field with neutral playing conditions.
Next, Empower Field at Mile High Stadium has become a massive hit among the biggest musicians in the world the last few years. Of note, Taylor Swift, Metallica, and Foo Fighters have played there, among many others. But, adding that roof will mean those concerts won’t be limited to the summer and can be played in the winter, too. Traditionally, Ball Arena has been the home to the big-time artists in the winter. In the near future, it seems the new stadium will likely host them with a much larger seating capacity.
And for fans, having a roof will create a more comfortable environment to watch a game. Even this past weekend, during NFL kickoff, the game was delayed due to lightning in the area. In the new stadium, the team would have been able to close the roof and continue playing without a delay. That comfort extends to bitterly cold games, if the team wants to close the roof during those days.
One more positive of the retractable roof is the fresh air and sunlight it will allow in. There’s a possibility the team could still use real grass turf, like they do in Arizona, but that is only possible due to the unique field which rolls outside.
The downsides to a retractable roof vs. an outdoor stadium
The biggest downside of the new Denver Broncos stadium having a retractable roof is the home field advantage which comes with the cold, snowy games. The question becomes: When will the roof be closed? Will there be a certain temperature the team deems as time to close it up? Will the roof always be closed when it’s snowing outside?
There’s no doubt the altitude helps build the home field advantage at Empower Field at Mile High Stadium, and so do the raucous Denver die-hards; but the snow and cold are part of it too.
According to FOX Sports, cold-weather cities like Buffalo, Green Bay, and yes Denver, have the best home field advantage the last four years:
Buffalo, which has the NFL’s best home record over the past four years at 28-6, has eight more wins at home than on the road, though 20-13 on the road is nothing to be ashamed of. Denver is also at plus-8 home vs. road, and the Packers and Bears are plus-7, with the altitude and late-season cold helping them to natural advantages.
That late-season cold also comes into play during the all-important playoffs. To wit, the Broncos have gone 16-5 at home in the playoffs and their last home playoff loss was in 2012 to Baltimore in the Fail Mary game.
Playing at home in the cold helps the Broncos late in the season and playoffs, especially when they get used to the temperatures by practicing outdoors.
The inverse is true as well; indoor teams rarely play well outside when the temps are colder. This study from 2014 explained,
“teams with domed home stadiums may have more difficult time in playing away from home than do the teams with outdoor home stadiums. The teams that play in domed stadiums at home may need extra preparation for the game when playing in outdoor stadiums away from home.”
In other words, not only will the Broncos be losing part of their home field advantage when teams come to Denver for a snow or cold-weather game, but the Broncos will get used to playing in perfect conditions. So, when they have to travel to, say, Buffalo or Kansas City for a cold-weather playoff game, Denver will be at a disadvantage.
According to this Sports Insights piece, indoor teams went 12-44 in outdoor stadiums in the playoffs from 1990-2019. I added up the 2019-2024 playoff games and indoor teams went 3-11 in outdoor venues over that span. That’s a very low 21.4% win percentage for indoor teams playing outdoors in the playoffs since 1990. (It’s the same percentage the last six years, too.)
Another massive downside to the product on the field is the likelihood of using artificial turf at the new Broncos stadium. While it’s possible they could design the stadium with real grass, it’s unlikely that’s the route they will go. The grounds crew has had a difficult time keeping the current turf green throughout the season in recent years due to cold temps and less sunlight in the late fall and winter. Artificial turf is tougher on players’ bodies and causes more injuries.
There’s also a question of how much money a Super Bowl host city makes. One study showed the 2015 Super Bowl cost the city of Glendale, Arizona between $579,000 and $1.2 million. They also mention that while bringing in thousands of tourists for the big game helps fill hotels, that money goes to national hotel chains, and doesn’t stay in the city. They also say, depending on the city, much of the money spent goes into a new stadium. That won’t happen in Denver.
As part of their release, the Walton-Penner ownership group explained the new stadium will be completely privately funded, with no new taxes levied on the people of Colorado. That, we can all agree, is great news.
The lease on the land where Empower Field at Mile High Stadium sits runs out in 2031. Meaning that’s when the new Denver Broncos stadium will likely open in Burnham Yard. The Denver Broncos first played at Bears Stadium in 1960, which was home to the AAA Denver Bears baseball team. It was later renamed Mile High Stadium and they played there until 2001. That’s when “New” Mile High Stadium opened next door. It was designed to hold two more people than the previous version and kept the metal floors so when people stomp it makes incredible noise known as Rocky Mountain Thunder. Since 2000, the Broncos have a 61.9% win percentage at home, 8th-best in the NFL. Six of the seven teams ahead of them also have outdoor stadiums.