Sunday afternoon’s football game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Baltimore Ravens was snowy and bright, and fans who braved the freezing temperatures were met with snow-covered seats at Paycor Stadium.
According to WCPO, the Bengals removed snow from the aisles and the sidelines, but did not make an effort to remove any of the several inches of snow that had fallen on stadium seating. The conditions left Hamilton County commissioner Stephanie Summerow Dumas outraged as she made a statement regarding the condition of the stadium online.
Despite local authorities’ disappointment with the snow-covered seats, the Bengals may not be penalized by the NFL for leaving the snow in place.
The NFL Operations Manual states that, “Each home club is responsible for having a snow removal plan in place and ensuring that its stadium has adequate snow removal equipment available. Snow and ice must be removed from the stadium before all games. This applies to the playing field, sidelines, seating bowl, aisles, pedestrian ramps, walkways, parking lots, etc."
In contrast, Brian McCarthy, vice president of communications at the NFL, didn’t see any rules violations at Paycor. “The league's football operations and security departments were in contact with the club and stadium personnel over the previous 48 hours regarding snow removal. The field, sidelines, aisles and walkways were prioritized and appropriately cleared throughout the weekend,” McCarthy continued. “Additional snowfall occurred overnight which resulted in minimal accumulation within the stadium bowl. Mitigation efforts were implemented to ensure the field and stadium were ready for the game. Stadium personnel assisted fans at their seats as necessary.”
Fans and season ticket holders spoke with Local 12 News regarding the condition of the seats. Said one season ticket holder, “You really needed a scraper to be able to get the snow off. I mean, like, slamming the seat back and forth and brushing it with our gloves and things didn't do the trick. There was ice underneath the snow."
