National Football League teams ranked by average attendance 2020

NFL attendances plummet in the pandemic

The 2020 NFL season was several impacted by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. All preseason games were cancelled, along with the 2021 Pro Bowl and all international games. Although the 256 regular season games were able to be completed according to the original schedule, all games were played with a restricted crowd or with no crowd at all. As a result, the average home attendances for all franchises were significantly lower than usual. The Dallas Cowboys were still able to bring in an average regular season crowd of just over 28 thousand to their AT&T Stadium, which holds a capacity of 80,000 for football games. As a result, the Cowboys' total regular season home attendance stood at 197 thousand people for their eight home games during the 2020 season.

Franchises feel the impact of COVID

Ticketing revenue is one of the main sources of income for franchises in the NFL. In recent years, gate receipts have made up around 15 percent of the NFL's total revenue, with the average ticket price for a game rising to over 100 U.S. dollars in the last three years. With the matchday experience playing such an important role in the enjoyment and success of the NFL, the sport was hit particularly hard by the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. Estimates during the pandemic suggested that some teams stood to lose up to almost 380 million U.S. dollars in potential ticketing revenue as a result of the health crisis. Ultimately, 13 of the 32 teams in the league played every single one of their home games behind closed doors, while the other teams were only able to admit a fraction of their stadium's capacity.