1 photo from the men's Final Four reminded everyone why it shouldn't be played in a football stadium
Maybe basketball games should be played at basketball arenas.
The men’s Final Four is set to begin Saturday, but when the NC State Wolfpack arrived at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, fans were given a stark reminder of just how bad the in-person viewing experience can be at these games.
State Farm Stadium houses the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals, and when you play a basketball game in a domed football stadium — as is typical for the Final Four to accommodate a higher capacity of attendees — it creates awful sight lines for fans, at least ones who can’t or aren’t willing to pay for top-flight seats.
The end result is something that looks like this.
Made it to State Farm Stadium
#GoPack | #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/c4xgszJfsu
— NC State Men's Basketball (@PackMensBball) April 4, 2024
What a way to take in the game.
It’s obvious why they do this. State Farm Stadium sits 63,400 people, nearly four times more than the nearby Footprint Center in Phoenix. It’s one of the smallest arenas in the NBA, but even the largest ones in the country don’t rival football stadiums.
And while it’s nothing new for the Final Four, fans were once again in awe of just how bad the upper deck seats are at these games.
Watching the game like: pic.twitter.com/7QuMVED2EU
— BK (@benkdigital) April 5, 2024
The fact that someone is gonna sit there and pay for it is insane
—
(@swaggypcamp) April 5, 2024
The Battle at Bristol wasn’t even this bad.
— Matt Bellamy (@mbellamy1028) April 4, 2024
PLAY. BASKETBALL. IN. BASKETBALL. ARENAS. https://t.co/4eCSnrC4X3
— Flip (@flippin_2) April 4, 2024
We trying to see who got fouled https://t.co/3kXbHitOu5 pic.twitter.com/chFwRLOKH8
— Transfer Portal (@NCAAPortal) April 5, 2024
This will never be appealing to me.
The women playing in a sold-out NBA arena is such a better atmosphere/experience. https://t.co/bpzRty2Ye1
— Kim Adams (@_kimadams) April 5, 2024
What is this — A BASKETBALL COURT FOR ANTS?! https://t.co/9J4aNUY7iO
— College Sports Only (@CollegeSportsO) April 5, 2024