With a victory against Alabama, Auburn is now scheduled to play Georgia Saturday, Dec 2 for the SEC championship in the newly constructed Mercedes-Benz Stadium. This will be the third NCAA football game ever held in the stadium preceding the Alabama-Florida State and Tennessee-Georgia Tech games.
Construction officially began on the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in May 2014, and totaled around $1.6 billion upon completion. Construction was finished just in time this year for the Atlanta Falcons to play the Arizona Cardinals on Aug. 26. The stadium is meant to serve as a replacement for the Georgia Dome and was built right beside the south edge of the Georgia Dome. With the stadium complete, the Georgia Dome was imploded on Nov. 20.
The new stadium is home to two professional teams: the Atlanta Falcons and MLS’s Atlanta United who just completed their ignagural season. The stadium also holds various concerts and events. Several artists will be performing in the stadium including Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift in fall 2018. Three prominent and upcoming sports events for the Mercedes-Benz Stadium are this season’s NCAA College Football Playoff National Championship Game, Super Bowl LIII in 2019 and the NCAA Final Four in 2020.
The Mercedes-Benz Stadium can seat up to 83,000 though seating can vary according to the event. The stadium features an eight-part transparent and retractable roof which designers say will open in about 12 minutes, but work on the roof is still underway. The roof was closed during the Alabama-Florida State and Tennessee-Georgia Tech games, and it is unknown as of now whether the roof will be open for the SEC championship Saturday.
The Mercedes Stadium holds the largest video board in professional sports with a 63,000 square-foot HD halo board that makes a complete circle above the field. The stadium also has 1,800 wireless access points, and a network designed by IBM for fast and reliable internet. The Mercedes Stadium has partnered with Waze to provide directions to parking sites, restrooms, and wheelchair access.
Another prominent feature of the Mercedes-Benz Stadium is their Fan First Pricing. Stadium attendees can purchase refillable Coca-Cola cups or a Dasani water bottle for $2. For those seeking more than the regular stadium diet, the stadium offers dozens of chain restaurants like Jim ‘N Nicks BBQ and Papa John’s as well as local restaurants like the Varsity and Antico Pizza.
Fans arriving in the stadium will greeted by an array of visuals. The stadium partnered with the Savannah College of Art and Design to provide sport-themed works from 54 different local and international artists. The stadium also has over 2,000 monitors placed around the stadium.
Stadium features are still being added, and the grounds which formerly held the Georgia Dome are scheduled to become a park area with tailgating space, sculptures, and picnic grounds by fall 2018.
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