Attendance at this year's NCAA tournament games — due to the coronavirus pandemic — will be limited to a relative number of family and essential staff that could total in a few dozens, not the expected thousands.
Atlanta had anticipated crowds of more than 80,000 to fill Mercedes-Benz Stadium for its first NCAA action with the Final Four. Ticketgoers will be fully refunded.
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Since 2009, tournament finals have been largely held in stadiums that seat more than 70,000 spectators.
Attendance at NCAA college basketball tournament games peaked at 800,377 the last time it finished in Atlanta — in 2013.
Since then, college basketball's marquee games had seen overall attendance figures drop. A total of 689,753 fans attended tournament games last year.
The Final Four games in Minneapolis in 2019 drew 144,773 spectators — 72,711 to semifinals between Auburn and Virginia and Texas Tech and Michigan State; and 72,062 to the final game between Virginia and Texas Tech.
Overall average attendance during last year’s tournament was 19,159 per session in arenas in Anaheim, Calif.; Columbia, S.C.; Dayton, Ohio; Des Moines, Iowa; Hartford, Conn.; Jacksonville; Kansas City, Mo.; Louisville, Ky.; Tulsa, Okla.; Salt Lake City; San Jose, Calif.; and Washington, D.C.
By comparison, the 2013 Final Four in Atlanta hosted 149,676 people at the former Georgia Dome. A record 74,326 attended the championship game, won 82-76 by Louisville over Michigan. (The title has since been vacated.)
Per session attendance in 2013 averaged 22,233 in many of the same places as 2019.
The impact of the NCAA's decision will be immeasurable.
Some of teams to have already qualified for the tournament — Liberty, Yale and Winthrop — play before smaller crowds average fewer than 1,500 fans.
This year's tournament first round games are to be played in Albany, N.Y.; Cleveland; Dayton; Greensboro, N.C.; Omaha, Neb.; Sacramento, Calif.; Spokane, Wash.; St. Louis; Tampa, Fla. The regional sites are Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles and New York.
The final games in Atlanta will be played April 4-6.
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