LOS ANGELES — Change is never easy. But for fans attending their first event at the Intuit Dome, there is no choice but to embrace it.
Everything about the fan experience at the Clippers’ new $2 billion arena is new—from the facial recognition used to buy concessions, to The Wall, a 4,500-seat area exclusive to Clippers fans.
Front Office Sports spoke to several people who attended Wednesday’s Clippers home opener against the Suns—from diehard Clippers fans to visiting Suns fans—to get real-time reactions to the experience at the NBA’s newest stadium.
The New Technology
It’s nearly impossible to function around the arena without downloading the “LA Clippers + Intuit Dome” mobile app. This is where fans can scan their face to enter concessions areas and team stores, and also input their payment information to be automatically charged upon exiting those areas.
“It’s a little bit of a hassle,” said Akhil Chopra, who was visiting L.A. from Chicago. “It’s not like we’re super [techy] here.”
Ryan Q., a Suns fan living just outside Los Angeles, said he thinks the features are “cool” but said he believes his parents would struggle.
“I’d have to teach them how to do everything,” Ryan Q. told FOS.
However, both Chopra and Ryan Q. believe the features should get better as time goes along and fans adjust to the nuances. Chopra said the arena’s other tech innovations were “awesome.”
“I think it’s really fan-friendly,” Chopra said. “The activities and all that stuff, they don’t do this in Chicago. … [The Intuit Dome] is a beautiful stadium.”
The Wall
Fan zones within arenas are not new, even in the NBA. But the Clippers are the first to have one take up around a quarter of the arena—and the only one where there are about 300 spots directly behind the basket in a standing-room-only area called the Supporters Section.
Spoke to a Josh, a fan at The Wall! who was holding his Suns jersey.
— Colin Salao (@colincsalao) October 24, 2024
He was told by Clippers staff he had to remove his jersey, as it didn’t abide by the code of no opposing fans. He got his ticket from a friend, a season ticket holder, who wasn’t aware of the rules.
Reid Mitchell is one of the fans who bought a season pass to the Supporters Section—which costs $999 for all 41 games; a $24.37 rate per ticket. He cited the affordability of the tickets as one of the reasons he got it.
“I’m a very passionate fan, so I think it’s perfect for me, being able to stand—and it’s affordable to go to every game,” Mitchell told FOS. “To just be able to cheer the Clippers as they embark on this new era … I couldn’t miss being at the first season of the Dome.”
Rex Osagie, who was seated directly beside the Supporters Section, made the trip from Illinois because he wanted to witness the first Intuit Dome game in person.
“I think it’s awesome. Honestly, I think something like this sets the bar so much higher, and we’ve seen a lot of the new arenas like Chase Center in Golden State,” Osagie told FOS.
The Restrooms
Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, who was dancing around in the Supporters Section during the opener, consistently bragged about the Intuit Dome having more than 1,100 toilets and urinals. He wanted fans to get back to their seats immediately.
Liam, a Kings fan, raved about how easy the restroom experience was.
“There were so many empty ones,” Liam told FOS.
