What is the seating capacity of Acrisure Stadium?

Acrisure Stadium seats 68,400 for NFL games. The capacity was expanded in 2015 when 2,390 seats were added. For concerts, capacity can exceed 73,000, Taylor Swift's 2023 concert set the all-time attendance record.

Where is Acrisure Stadium located?

Acrisure Stadium is at 100 Art Rooney Avenue on the North Shore of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15212. It sits on the banks of the Ohio River, across from the downtown skyline and adjacent to PNC Park.

How do I get to Acrisure Stadium by public transit?

Take the T light rail to Allegheny station on the North Shore, a 5-minute walk to the stadium. The T runs from South Hills through downtown and across the Allegheny River. Fare is free within the downtown zone. Multiple bus routes also serve the North Shore on game days.

Is there parking at Acrisure Stadium?

Stadium lots on the North Shore cost $40–$60 on game days. Gold Lots 1–5 are closest. Additional parking is available in the North Shore garages and downtown lots across the river ($20–$40). Many fans park downtown and walk across the Roberto Clemente or Andy Warhol bridges. Pre-purchase through SpotHero.

What was the stadium called before Acrisure Stadium?

The stadium opened as Heinz Field in 2001 under a naming rights deal with the H.J. Heinz Company. In July 2022, the naming rights were sold to Acrisure, a Grand Rapids-based insurance company, in a 15-year deal worth approximately $150 million.

What major events has Acrisure Stadium hosted?

The 2011 NHL Winter Classic (Penguins vs. Capitals), 2017 NHL Stadium Series (Penguins vs. Flyers), Kenny Chesney's annual concerts, Taylor Swift's record-breaking 2023 show (73,000+), Pitt Panthers football, and the annual Backyard Brawl against West Virginia.

Can you walk to Acrisure Stadium from downtown Pittsburgh?

Yes. The Roberto Clemente Bridge (Sixth Street Bridge) closes to vehicle traffic on game days and becomes a pedestrian walkway directly from downtown to the stadium. It's about a 10-minute walk from Market Square.

Acrisure Stadium, Pittsburgh: Capacity & Visitor Guide

About Acrisure Stadium

On the North Shore of Pittsburgh, on the banks of the Ohio River, a 68,400-seat open-air venue frames the downtown skyline behind every play. Acrisure Stadium is home to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Pittsburgh Panthers, and no NFL stadium offers a better view of its city.

The Steelers have called this place home since 2001, after three decades at Three Rivers Stadium. On fall Sundays, the Terrible Towel twirls from every seat while the open horseshoe bowl frames the downtown skyline, the confluence of three rivers, and the bridges that define Pittsburgh. The Pitt Panthers also play here, and the annual Backyard Brawl against West Virginia has become one of college football’s fiercest rivalries.

Designed by HOK Sport (now Populous) and built for $281 million, the stadium opened in August 2001. The design uses 12,000 tons of structural steel, a deliberate tribute to Pittsburgh’s identity as the Steel City. The horseshoe opens toward the south end, framing the downtown skyline across the river. The playing surface is natural grass, a choice Steelers ownership has kept despite the field’s long reputation for poor, muddy conditions.

Acrisure Stadium has hosted two NHL outdoor games (the 2011 Winter Classic and 2017 Stadium Series), record-breaking concerts from Kenny Chesney and Taylor Swift, and some of the most-replayed moments in Steelers history. The walk across the Roberto Clemente Bridge from downtown on game day, through a sea of black and gold, is one of the great pregame experiences in American sports.

Getting to Acrisure Stadium

Public Transit

Acrisure Stadium is walkable from downtown Pittsburgh and served by the T light rail system.

→ Via the T Light Rail: Take the T to Allegheny station on the North Shore, a 5-minute walk to the stadium. The T runs from South Hills through downtown and is free within the downtown zone.

→ Via Bus: Pittsburgh Regional Transit operates game-day express routes from Park & Ride lots. Regular routes 1, 2, and 4 also serve the North Shore.

The most popular way to reach the stadium is on foot. The Roberto Clemente Bridge (Sixth Street Bridge) closes to vehicle traffic on game days, becoming a pedestrian-only walkway from downtown to the stadium, about a 10-minute walk from Market Square.

Driving + Parking

The stadium address is 100 Art Rooney Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15212. I-279 provides the most direct access to the North Shore.

→ From Philadelphia (~300 mi): Pennsylvania Turnpike (I-76) West to I-376 West into Pittsburgh. About 4.5 hours.

→ From Cleveland (~130 mi): I-76 East / Ohio Turnpike to I-376 into Pittsburgh. About 2 hours.

→ From Morgantown, WV (~75 mi): I-79 North to I-279 into Pittsburgh. About 1 hour 15 minutes.

North Shore Gold Lots 1–5 are closest to the stadium at $40–$60 on game days. Additional lots on the North Shore and in downtown garages across the river cost $20–$40. Many fans park downtown and walk across the bridges. Tailgating is popular in the Gold Lots. Pre-purchase through SpotHero.

Rideshare

Uber and Lyft operate designated zones on the North Shore. Drop-off is along Art Rooney Avenue and General Robinson Street. Post-game pickup shifts to reduce congestion, check the Steelers app. From downtown hotels, expect $6–$10. Surge pricing after games is manageable, walk across the Clemente Bridge to downtown for quicker pickups.

From the Airport

→ Pittsburgh International (PIT): 17 miles west of the stadium, about 25–35 minutes by car. Rideshare runs $30–$45. The 28X Airport Flyer bus connects PIT to downtown Pittsburgh for $2.75 (about 50 minutes), then walk across the Clemente Bridge.

Construction & Design

HOK Sport, now Populous, designed the stadium with WTW Architects of Pittsburgh as associate architect, and a joint venture of Hunt Construction Group and Mascaro Construction built it between June 1999 and 2001, with Bliss & Nyitray as structural engineer. At the Rooney family’s request, the architects rooted the design in Pittsburgh’s identity, using roughly 12,000 tons of structural steel both to carry the stands and to serve as a visible exterior tribute to the city’s steelmaking heritage. The $281 million publicly funded venue rose on the North Shore next to the imploded Three Rivers Stadium, part of a coordinated riverfront development that also produced PNC Park a short walk away and the David L. Lawrence Convention Center. The signature move is the open south end: rather than enclose the bowl, HOK left it open so the stands frame downtown Pittsburgh and the point where the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers meet to form the Ohio.

Unlike many modern NFL venues, Acrisure Stadium plays on natural grass, a Kentucky bluegrass surface kept since the venue opened. Steelers ownership has repeatedly chosen to keep grass despite persistent criticism of the field’s condition, most famously a November 2007 Monday-night game against Miami played on a churned, muddy surface. The field is kept playable through Pittsburgh winters by an underground heating system that circulates warm water beneath it. The same open river end that gives the stadium its views also lets wind off the confluence swirl through the bowl, a factor kickers and coaches have long noted.

Following the 2014 season, the Steelers completed a roughly $34.5 million expansion of the south end zone, again designed by Populous, adding 2,390 seats, five new suites, and a new club level in the South Plaza and raising capacity to today’s 68,400. The project cleared a nearly two-decade season-ticket waiting list while preserving the skyline sightlines. Fan life centers on the FedEx Great Hall, a memorabilia-filled concourse on the east side that adjoins the Steelers Hall of Honor Museum. For its first two decades the scoreboard was crowned by oversized Heinz ketchup bottles that “poured” after Steelers scores, a landmark of the Heinz Field era retired when Acrisure took over the naming rights in 2022.

History of Acrisure Stadium

Acrisure Stadium was built to replace Three Rivers Stadium, which the Steelers shared with the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1970 to 2000. In 1997, financing was approved for separate stadiums for both franchises. Construction began on June 18, 1999, on a site adjacent to Three Rivers Stadium on the North Shore, and the $281 million project was designed by HOK Sport (now Populous).

First Game (October 7, 2001): The Steelers defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 16–7 before a sellout crowd. Jerome Bettis scored the first touchdown in stadium history.

Super Bowl XL Season (2005): The Steelers, led by Ben Roethlisberger and the Bus, won three road playoff games and Super Bowl XL, the franchise’s fifth Lombardi Trophy.

Super Bowl XLIII Season (2008): The Steelers defeated the Arizona Cardinals 27–23 in one of the greatest Super Bowls ever played, capped by Santonio Holmes’ toe-tap touchdown catch. The Terrible Towel waved over a sixth championship.

NHL Winter Classic (January 1, 2011): The Pittsburgh Penguins hosted the Washington Capitals before 68,111 fans, the largest hockey crowd in Pennsylvania history, in a game played in falling snow.

Taylor Swift (June 2023): The Eras Tour concert drew over 73,000 fans, the all-time attendance record, and prompted Swift to add Pittsburgh as one of her signature tour stops.

From the Steel Curtain to the Terrible Towel, from frozen hockey to Taylor Swift, Acrisure Stadium carries the weight of Pittsburgh’s identity, a stadium built from steel and set against a skyline that no other NFL venue can match.

Sources & Further Reading

Wikipedia entry on Acrisure Stadium: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acrisure_Stadium. Architects, engineer, cost, the natural-grass surface, the 2015 expansion, and capacity history.
Stadiums of Pro Football, Acrisure Stadium: stadiumsofprofootball.com. Construction, the 2015 south-end-zone expansion, and stadium facts.
Populous, Heinz Field (Acrisure Stadium) project: populous.com. The architect on the steel-heritage design and the open south end.
Acrisure Stadium official site: acrisurestadium.com. The FedEx Great Hall, address, and guest-services details.