Falcons Plan to Have 10K-20K Fans at Home Games Amid Pandemic

The Atlanta Falcons announced Wednesday the seating capacity at Mercedes-Benz Stadium for the 2020 NFL season will be reduced to between 10,000 and 20,000 fans to provide space for social distancing.

The stadium typically holds 71,000 people. The NFL has mandated that attending fans must wear masks at any league game this season.

NFL Vice President of Communications Brian McCarthy confirmed the use of masks will be a leaguewide mandate:

The Falcons said season-ticket holders will be asked to rank each of the team's first four home games if they wish to attend a game amid the coronavirus pandemic. A second survey will be sent out in October to cover the remaining home games, if necessary.

Atlanta's first game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium is set for Sept. 13 against the Seattle Seahawks.

The NFL and the NFL Players Association remain in discussions to finalize the details of the 2020 season, including health protocols.

The union reportedly informed players Tuesday there won't be any preseason games this year, per NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport.

According to Daniel Kaplan of The Athletic, the NFL will allow individual teams to set their own capacity levels.

Without exhibition contests, the first game of the year will see the reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs host the Houston Texans on Sept. 10.

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Bleacher Report's David Gardner interviews athletes and other sports figures for the podcast How to Survive Without Sports.