What Will Penn State's Beaver Stadium Seating Look Like in 2025?

Penn State will build nearly 8,000 temporary seats at Beaver Stadium over the next two seasons but expects to maintain a seating capacity of at least 100,000 while renovating the venue through 2025 and 2026. Penn State on Thursday released new renderings of the $700 million renovation and new details about what Penn State football fans can expect for the next two years.

In a news release, Penn State said that it will install temporary seating on Beaver Stadium's West side in phases during the 2025 and 2026 football seasons. Penn State already has removed the press box and upper seating deck of the stadium's West side in preparation for the complete overhaul. Penn State said that it will install about 7,900 temporary seats, along with temporary restrooms and concession stands, atop the planned suite level. Penn State Athletic Director Patrick Kraft told select media outlets, including The Athletic, that some seats will be located in the stadium's northeast and southeast corners in addition to the West side. The company that that constructs seating platforms at the Phoenix Open golf tournament in Scottsdale will install the temporary seats, Kraft told The Athletic.

About 1,800 of those seats impacted by the renovation are set aside for students. Penn State has notified season-ticket holders impacted by the construction and said they could choose temporary seats or available seats elsewhere in Beaver Stadium. However, Penn State said that upgrades and relocations "will be extremely limited" over the next two seasons. No current season-ticket holders will lose seats, Penn State said, though their seat locations may change.

"It is expected Beaver Stadium will maintain a capacity of more than100,000 throughout the renovation project," Penn State said in a news release. "Football game day parking and tailgating are not anticipated to be limited during the stadium construction period, however there may be minimal
impacts across the construction site. The construction footprint will be expanded during the off-season but will shrink to accommodate football game day parking in-season."

Phase 2 of Penn State's renovation plan is in full swing, with 450 workers on-site daily during as the project continues through the spring and summer. Penn State is renovating Beaver Stadium in part to position it as ayear-round entertainment and event destination in State College. The university wants to host major events, such as concerts and sporting events, as well as smaller events such as corporate meetings, private functions and basically any large or small gathering in central Pennsylvania. That's why Penn State officials scrapped the idea of simply addressing Beaver Stadium's $200 million repairs backlog, which they said would produce a $655 million deficit over the next 30 years. Instead, if conducted according to their budget models, the $700 million renovation would generate a $44 million profit, officials said.

Penn State has received more than $70 million in publicly announced donations for the renovation, most of which is tied to naming rights for new club and public spaces at Beaver Stadium. The Lubert Family Welcome Center, for instance, will serve a university-wide purpose. Former Penn State wrestler and trustee Ira Lubert contributed $10 million to the renovation project and received naming rights to the Welcome Center. The renovation will add about 47,000 square feet of event space to Beaver Stadium. Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi has said that she wants Beaver Stadium to create a "front-door experience" for the university and act as an introductory space for new and prospective students.