NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — The Titans released animations showing the inside of the new Nissan Stadium and the surrounding development Monday in conjunction with the media event for the new Titans House. Besides the eye-popping splendor of the state-of-the-art amenities, there’s something else notable about the orientation of the stadium.
The field inside the $2.1 Billion stadium will run east to west and not the traditional north to south track utilized at the current Nissan Stadium and at most football venues throughout the country.
The new Nissan Stadium is fully enclosed, so it may not seem like the direction the field runs would not matter. But the stadium will feature a translucent roof and sliding garage doors beyond the end zones to allow outside air – and light – inside. Still, team sources say sunlight was taken into consideration in the development of the stadium plans and will not be an issue.
The new stadium, located a block east of the current one, will make the Titans just the fourth team in the NFL with a field that runs east and west. The other three – the Cowboys, Falcons and Vikings – are all inside stadiums as well. But notably, AT&T Stadium in Dallas has had issues with blinding sunlight coming through its giant west-facing windows during games.
The sunlight even cost the home team during a NFC Wild Card game against the 49ers in 2022.
The Titans tell NewsChannel 5 that the east-west track is the best fit for the stadium on the new site and the orientation of the east bank development to surround the team’s home in the coming years. But they did extensive surveys to make sure that sunlight coming in from the west could be accounted for and reduced.
The study showed that during a specific time in the late afternoon during a couple week period each season the sun might be able to leak through the windows. To prevent any disruption should a game be played at that time, the windows are equipped with automatic shades to block out the light.
It’s an under the radar, yet important feature of this state-of-the-art stadium. Almost 15 years after AT&T Stadium opened for $1.2 Billion, the Titans new $2 Billion dollar home will come furnished with shades.
