Here is why some Chiefs fans support the new tailgating rule at Arrowhead
There was quite a buzz leading up to the Chiefs’ preseason finale Thursday night at Arrowhead Stadium.
It had little to do with the game, of course.
The new rule for tailgating at Chiefs games, which were announced earlier this week, left many fans upset. At kickoff, fans with tickets will be asked to enter Arrowhead Stadium. Fans without a ticket will be asked to leave. The Star’s Blair Kerkhoff has all the details here.
While many fans expressed their displeasure with the new policy, some reached out to say they were happy. Here is what they were saying.
Brian Hall talked about the difficulty in making it to a game because of the influx of tailgaters.
“I really welcome this change,” Hall wrote. “For several years I have had tickets to the game and left my home on the west side of town two or three hours prior to kickoff and have fought the traffic jam to make it to kickoff. A couple of times I’ve even missed kickoff when leaving home this early. It’s all been due to the fans who don’t have tickets to the game, but just hang out in the parking lot.”
A commenter on the story about upset fans wrote about the difficulty in leaving after a game.
“Arrowhead has always been a quagmire for getting out of the parking lot after the game. This at least makes it marginally easier by getting rid of some number of cars before the game ends. I don’t know what the percentage is currently, but even if 10 percent of the people who park and tailgate don’t actually attend the game, that’s a sizable chunk of traffic cleared out.”
Roger Foreman wrote to say why he believes the new rule makes sense.
“My assumption is the Chiefs want a better experience for those who pay and attend the game,” Foreman wrote. “Also incurring costs for security and fewer parking space availability would be a given along with cleaning up after the consumption of alcohol for several hours for those who do not attend.
“This policy does not affect tailgating prior to the game which a majority of paying customers enjoy.”
Twitter user Joshua Drown wrote: “It is long overdue for us to address the drunk driving culture that surrounds sports events. If the Chiefs and the NFL start in the parking lot, then that is one small movement forward. Doing a better job inside the stadiums would be a welcome second movement forward.”
Twitter user Travis Hudson wrote: “I have absolutely no issue with this policy and I cannot wrap my head around the overreaction to it. The product the Chiefs sell is football with tailgating. They don’t sell a tailgating service and offer a little football on the side. If you wanna get wasted go to a bar & watch.”
Twitter user Josh Malone wrote: “Doesn’t bother me I’m there for the game. Personally I feel like halftime makes more sense, but it’s their stadium they can do what they want. You should be inside arrowhead losing your voice anyway.”
This story was originally published August 30, 2018 at 12:20 PM.