Saturday, May 16, 2026

Fans in Stands

Iowa State football
Photo Credit: Reese Strickland-USA TODAY Sports

Less than a week after University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel said there might not be college football, Iowa State University is selling tickets. ISU Director of Athletics Jamie Pollard rolled out a plan to sell 30,000 tickets per game, which would result in 50% capacity at the Cyclones’ stadium. Tickets would only be sold to those who renewed season tickets for this year, with no individual game sales.

Across the state, University of Iowa Athletics Director Gary Barta said he hasn’t ruled out 100% capacity at Kinnick Stadium this year.

Fans in the stands are particularly important to college athletics: the University of Minnesota and the University of Central Florida have both projected a $30 million drop in revenue should games be played without them, while Power 5 conference teams stand to lose a total of $1.2 billion in ticket sales.

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