Mercedes-Benz Stadium Game Day Guide
Atlanta Falcons · Atlanta, GA
Know Before You Go
- Bag policy
Clear plastic, vinyl, or PVC bags no larger than 12 x 6 x 12 inches and one-gallon clear freezer bags are permitted, plus a non-clear bag no larger than 4.5 x 6.5 inches.
Diaper bags must be clear and compliant, and medical exceptions require inspection at the gate.
- Bag storage
The Mobile Locker Company stores non-compliant bags for a fee outside Gate 1 and Gate 2.
For most major events, service begins two hours before the event and closes 90 minutes after it ends; items must be retrieved the same day.
- Gate opening
Mercedes-Benz Stadium gates currently open 90 minutes before Falcons kickoff.
Check the game-specific Know Before You Go message because timing can change.
- Mobile tickets
A mobile ticket is required for entry to Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Falcons tickets can be managed through the team app; open or save the ticket before reaching the gate.
- Re-entry
Guests may not exit and re-enter Mercedes-Benz Stadium using the same ticket.
- Prohibited items
Mercedes-Benz Stadium prohibits weapons, outside food and most drinks, non-compliant bags, hard containers, large camera equipment, chairs, drones, noisemakers, lasers, fireworks, and other listed items.
All guests and carry-in items are screened; review the complete official list before leaving home.
- First aid
First Aid locations are near Sections 133, 243, and 345.
For medical assistance, call 470-341-5020, text the issue and location to 470-444-0234, or contact stadium staff.
- Nursing and lactation
Breastfeeding or pumping rooms are near Sections 116 and 219, with Mamava suites near Sections 132 and 333.
- Family restrooms
All-inclusive single-user restrooms are near Sections 102, 117, 121, 133, 203, 215, 246, 310, and 313.
All public restrooms are accessible, and nearly every restroom has a baby-changing station.
- Tickets for children
Children shorter than 33 inches may enter Falcons games free if they sit on a guardian's lap.
- Guest services
Guest Service Centers are at Gates 1 and 2 and near Sections 116, 201, 244, and 301.
For event-day assistance, text a description and location to 470-444-0234.
- Service animals
Task-trained service dogs and miniature horses are permitted; comfort, emotional-support, and therapy animals are not.
Contact Guest Experience in advance if a seating relocation may be needed.
- Smoking and vaping
Mercedes-Benz Stadium is a smoke-free, vape-free, and tobacco-free campus, including the immediate gate plazas.
Game Day Timeline
What the day looks like at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, hour by hour.
Lots and Decks Open
Stadium parking decks and Marshalling Yard surface lots open. Tailgaters claim their spots in The Gulch and surrounding areas.
Tailgate Scene Builds
Southern tailgating culture in full effect, smokers, grills, and cornhole games across the Marshalling Yard lots. Downtown Atlanta bars and restaurants fill with Falcons fans.
Gates Open
Stadium gates open. Head inside early to explore the fan-first concessions, $2 hot dogs and $5 beers with no long waits. The halo video board warmup is worth arriving early.
Player Warmups
Players take the field for warmups. Lower bowl end zone sections offer the best views. Check if the retractable roof is open, staff announce roof status before gates open.
Find Your Seats
Grab your Chick-fil-A sandwich and settle in. The pregame light show on the halo video board builds energy as kickoff approaches.
Game Time
The crowd erupts as 71,000 fans Rise Up under the retractable roof. The halo board replays are unlike anything in the NFL, immersive and massive.
Exit Strategy
MARTA handles post-game crowds efficiently, Vine City station is steps away. Downtown restaurants and bars are walkable for post-game celebration.
Tips & Fan Reports
The real party is in the Home Depot Backyard before the game. To have a grill and tables you unfortunately need a parking pass there but it is worth it.
Get there when the gates open so you can walk around the stadium, get food, and enjoy the vibe. You're paying too much money to arrive right before kickoff.
The retractable roof keeps the stadium climate-controlled when closed, but dress for outdoor tailgating in Atlanta heat for early-season games.
Mercedes-Benz Stadium has the best concession prices in the NFL. $2 hot dogs, $5 beers, $3 nachos. It is not a gimmick - they actually did it.
Mercedes-Benz Stadium has the NFL's most fan-friendly prices: $2 hot dogs, $5 beers, $2 refillable sodas. Bring cash or card.
Take MARTA to Vine City station. 5 minute walk to the gates and you skip downtown Atlanta traffic entirely. $2.50 each way.
The giant oculus roof opening is one of the coolest features in any stadium. Check if it will be open for your game.
One tent per parking space, 10 by 10, and it comes down before you walk into the stadium, so plan who carries it back to the car.
The tailgate runs thirty minutes past the start of the event rather than stopping at kickoff, so there is no rush to be in your seat for the opening drive if the tailgate is the point.
Bring weights, not stakes. The no-staking rule is absolute and it is the one thing most likely to leave a tent unusable on the day.
Before the Game
The Falcons tailgate happens on grass rather than asphalt: The Home Depot Backyard, the park beside the stadium, is where tailgating is permitted, for event-day ticket holders. One 10 by 10 shade tent is allowed per parking space, and the tent rule is specific: it must be weighted, with absolutely no staking of any kind, and it has to come down before you go into the stadium. The clock is unusual too: tailgating has to end thirty minutes after the event starts rather than at kickoff. Food is for your own family and friends; selling any of it is prohibited. Tailgating is also allowed in designated areas of the stadium lots, and the venue pushes hard on reserving parking in advance.
Where to Tailgate
The Home Depot Backyard
The park immediately west of the stadium and the venue's designated tailgating ground, on grass rather than in a lot. Open to event-day ticket holders, one 10 by 10 shade tent per parking space, and everything ends thirty minutes after the event begins.
Known for Grass tailgating · Ticket holders only · One 10x10 tent per space
Designated areas of the stadium lots
Tailgating is also permitted in marked parts of the Mercedes-Benz Stadium parking lots. Reserving and paying in advance is the venue's own recommendation, since on-site payment is possible but a space is not guaranteed at peak events.
Known for Designated areas only · Book in advance
The no-staking rule
Any tent anywhere on this ground has to be weighted down to stop it moving, with absolutely no staking of any kind permitted into the grass or the lot surface. It is the constraint that decides what you can actually bring.
Known for Weights, never stakes · Applies everywhere
Pregame Rules
What Mercedes-Benz Stadium allows before the game, and what it does not.
- Tailgating in The Home Depot Backyard areas, where permitted, is intended for event day ticket holders only.
- Tailgating activities are required to end 30 minutes after the start time of the event.
- Fans may bring up to one 10' by 10' shade tent per parking space, for use on the grass areas and tailgate spaces within The Home Depot Backyard, weather permitting.
- All tents must be weighted down to prevent movement, with absolutely no staking of any kind permitted.
- Tents must be taken down before entering the stadium.
- Fans are limited to bringing and preparing food for their family and friends. The sale of food or beverage items is prohibited.
- Excessive consumption of alcohol, and playing music at a volume disruptive to other fans, are not permitted.
- Tailgating is allowed in designated areas of the Mercedes-Benz Stadium parking lots.
Weather
Mercedes-Benz Stadium has a retractable roof, so these are the conditions for the walk in and the pregame, and the roof decides the rest.
Across the NFL season the warmest month is September, with an average high of 84°F, and the coldest is January, when the average low is 34°F. January is the wettest month at 4.3 inches and September the driest at 3.4 inches.
That January low ranks 20th coldest of the 32 NFL venues, and January here ranks 14th wettest.
September
3.4 inchesOctober
3.6 inchesNovember
3.8 inchesDecember
4.2 inchesJanuary
4.3 inchesWhat to Bring
- Only the outside food and drink the rule allows
Outside food and drinks are prohibited, but each guest may bring one factory-sealed, non-frozen water bottle up to 16.9 ounces.
- A card or a phone wallet
Mercedes-Benz Stadium accepts card and mobile payment only at concessions, bars, mobile vendors, and retail locations.
- Layers, gloves and a hat
January lows average 34°F outside Mercedes-Benz Stadium; the roof decides what the seats get.
- Sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat
September highs average 84°F outside Mercedes-Benz Stadium, whatever the roof does.
- A rain layer
January averages 4.3 inches of rain here, outside the roof.
Tailgate Gear
Lots open on event day, ending thirty minutes after the event starts.
- Tent weights: staking is absolutely prohibited, on grass or asphalt
- One 10 by 10 shade tent per parking space, and no more
- Food for your own group only; selling any of it is prohibited
- A plan for taking the tent down before you enter the stadium
How We Checked This Page
Every section below names the source it was read from and the day it was read. Where we could not reach a published figure, the page says so rather than presenting an estimate as a checked fact.
- Game day timeline
Gate opening time checked against the venue's own gate-opening policy: Mercedes-Benz Stadium gates currently open 90 minutes before Falcons kickoff.
- Pregame
Mercedes-Benz Stadium official site: Parking & Tailgating Guidelines and the Home Depot Backyard tailgating pages
- Weather
NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals
- Venue policies
Current Mercedes-Benz Stadium A-Z, accessibility, concessions, and Falcons event guidance reviewed for all structured venue-policy topics.