Photo: Chris Welch / The Verge
Verizon is continuing the rollout of its fast but spotty 5G service by bringing 5G to 13 NFL stadiums for kickoff weekend this Sunday. But the speedier network will only be available in “parts of the seating areas” and “could” be available in other parts of the stadiums. That type of hedging doesn’t exactly inspire confidence that Verizon’s 5G will let you post that touchdown celebration from the stands.
5G is still in its infancy, and carriers, including Verizon, are rushing to get networks up and running, sometimes at the cost of reliable service. The Verge’s Chris Welch went to Chicago to test Verizon 5G in May, shortly after its launch, and he said it showed truly next-gen download speeds of up to 1 gigabit per second… if you stood in just the right spot. Coverage varied from block to block due to Verizon’s use of mmWave technology, which can be easily disrupted by interfering buildings and other objects. It seems like these coverage limitations will still be present for Verizon’s 5G NFL rollout.
But if you want to try to get those gigabit speeds, check out this list to see if “parts” of your team’s stadium have 5G now:
Verizon says more stadiums will get 5G throughout the upcoming NFL season. Interestingly, one lucky NFL stadium might have surprise 5G coverage this weekend, as Verizon claimed that 13 stadiums have 5G, but it only listed the above 12. I wonder which stadium is the lucky one?