On Tuesday afternoon, the Steelers notified season ticket holders who had previously opted into attending home games should the opportunity present itself during the 2020 season that the team would be welcoming approximately 5,500 fans for each of the team's two games at Heinz Field in October.
The team is scheduled to host the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, Oct. 11, at 1 p.m. and the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, Oct. 18, also at 1 p.m.
"We greatly appreciate your patience as we worked towards hosting fans at Heinz Field. We are pleased to notify you that we have been approved to welcome a limited number of fans for each of our October home games," read the email.
Suite Holders who elected to use their suites this season if fans were permitted at Heinz Field will also have access to their suites at a reduced capacity beginning on Sunday, October 11. The team is reaching out to Suite Holders directly with additional details.
In a "What You Need To Know" section of the email, the team outlined the process by which season ticket holders who had previously opted in could be eligible to attend an October game. These included how season ticket holders can select seats for the games through their online account, the sections of the stadium where tickets would likely be available and unavailable due to safety restrictions, as well as how payment for tickets would be processed. The email also let season ticket holders know that all tickets would be mobile-only.
The team also added a "Know Before You Go" section on HeinzField.com for fans to review prior to arriving at Heinz Field for a Steelers game in October. Fans can access that here: https://heinzfield.com/welcomeback/
"We are pleased to welcome back our fans to Heinz Field this Sunday when we host the Philadelphia Eagles," said Team President Art Rooney II in a statement released on Tuesday afternoon. "We appreciate the guidance of our public health officials to make this possible.
"Under the guidance provided by the Governor's office, we are limited to 7,500 total in the stadium, which includes players, coaches, stadium staff, etc. Based on these limitations we will only be able to make available to our fans approximately 5,500 seats in the lower seating bowl at Heinz Field. Priority will be given to our season ticket holders who did not opt out this season. Seat selection opportunities will be based on a computer-generated random selection of season ticket holder accounts. Unfortunately, we may not have tickets available for all season ticket holders for this game.
"All fans entering the stadium will be required to wear masks and maintain social distancing protocols throughout Heinz Field. Tailgating will not be permitted in the stadium parking lots. Additional details concerning game day operations will be available prior to the weekend.
We look forward to hopefully having more fans soon while still maintaining a safe and healthy environment at Heinz Field."
