Mercedes-Benz Stadium provides a retractable roof and permanent seating for 66,000 to 72,000 NFL fans. It replaced the Georgia Dome, which served as the Falcons home from 1992-2016. Retractable seating on the field and Concourse 3 levels will provide an additional 8,000 seats for notable events such as the Super Bowl and World Cup.
“This stadium offers better views and a better setup for NFL football,” Wratten said. “It’s not just a multipurpose dome. The Georgia Dome was a nice facility, but overall, this stadium is bigger, better and more modern in order to deliver an unparalleled fan experience.”
More than 3,000 flat screen TVs are located in the suites, public rest rooms, bars, restaurants, clubs, as well as the public concourse areas, so that fans don’t miss any of the game while they are away from their seats.
One of the stadium’s signature features is the “halo board,” a 58-foot-tall, 1,100-foot long video screen that surrounds the field at the oculus roof opening.
“The 360-degree halo board is awesome and affords every fan a view of the score as well as instant replays from every angle,” Wratten said.
The overall stadium design focuses attention on the external illumination of the geometric shape, defined by a mix of ethylene tetrafluoroethylene plastic, glass and metal panels.
“To emphasize the façade illumination, concourse lighting is focused on the ground plane with minimal brightness on interior vertical surfaces that could be seen from the exterior,” Wratten said.
The fan experience is also enhanced by an increase from 407 concession stands in the Georgia Dome to 673. Mercedes-Benz Stadium also has six times the number of bars and restaurants, and 42 times the amount of beer taps of its predecessor.