- This is the Raiders’ first season in Las Vegas after moving from their longtime home in Oakland.
- The team’s new home field at Allegiant Stadium is state of the art.
- The Raiders will play the 2020 season without fans.
The Las Vegas Raiders will unfortunately be forced to play the 2020 NFL season without fans in attendance. Once fans are allowed to attend games they’ll do so in a stadium that is state of the art in every area imaginable. The exterior of Allegiant Stadium has already drawn comparisons to the ‘Death Star’ from the Star Wars movie series but it’s doubtful that Darth Vader’s planet sized weapon was as technologically advanced on the inside. It’s certainly a dramatic change from the notoriously dilapidated Oakland Alameda Coliseum.
Last week, the team announced that Allegiant Stadium would be the first sports venue to go cashless from opening day. According to the Raiders’ website:
Allegiant Stadium will be the first venue in American pro sports to open as a cashless venue. As part of our ongoing dedication to provide our fans and patrons with a world class sports and live entertainment experience, and in response to feedback from our most loyal customers, cash will not be accepted as a form of payment at any stadium-controlled parking location or within Allegiant Stadium.
Fans can use Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay along with credit and debit cards. They’ve also made accommodations for fans without these modern payment instruments by installing several cash-to-card kiosks similar to ones you’ll see at major airports. Fans can insert cash and receive a prepaid debit card in return.
Allegiant Stadium will also have cutting edge WiFi connectivity. The Las Vegas Review-Journal is reporting that the team enlisted Cox Business to help design the fastest and most reliable Internet service available:
The venue will include 227 miles of fiber-optic cabling as well as 1.5 million feet of copper cabling and be outfitted with 1,700 managed Wi-Fi access points supported by redundant 40-gigabit optical internet connections to deliver high-speed connections for every mobile device.
Nearly 2,200 Cisco Vision dynamic screens and signs will also be powered by Cox, a founding partner and official internet provider of Allegiant Stadium.
The speedy Internet connectivity will not only allow the fans to connect mobile devices but facilitate the use of the Raiders app to provide information such as the location of open parking spots and the wait time for concession lines. No doubt it will also allow patrons to place bets via a dwindling number of Nevada mobile betting apps.
