How Many Fans Will Be at the 2021 National Championship Game?

Monday night's Alabama-Ohio State national championship game will be played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. in front of a limited capacity crowd. 

Hard Rock Stadium, which is the home stadium for the Miami Dolphins and Miami Hurricanes, has a listed capacity of 65,326, but will host upward of 14,000 fans, a spokesperson for the College Football Playoff told the Tuscaloosa News.

Fans will also be seated in a socially distanced manner. 

The stadium has been a COVID-19 virus testing facility since March, closing for football games, though, often remaining open seven days a week. Testing was not available at Hard Rock Stadium on Monday, though vaccinations were available for three hours on Monday morning. 

Away from the stadium, local political officials from both markets urged their respective fan bases to stay home when watching Monday night's contest amid rising COVID-19 cases and limited capacity in hospitals. 

“We’re probably in our most precarious position since the pandemic began in early March,” Tuscaloosa mayor Walt Maddox told The New York Times last week. “...When your hospital has four available I.C.U. rooms left, that’s as serious as it gets."

“I encourage Buckeye Nation to do the same,” Columbus mayor Andrew Ginther wrote in an email to The Times, referring to his decision to watch Monday's contest from his home. “I know that is a lot to ask, but illness and possibly death have to count more than a national championship.”

Kickoff for Monday's title game is set for 8 p.m. ET.