The new Highmark Stadium hosts its first regular season game on Thursday, September 17, when the Buffalo Bills face the Detroit Lions on Thursday Night Football. The $2.1 to $2.2 billion building in Orchard Park, New York, seats 60,108, the smallest capacity in the NFL and about 11,500 fewer than the 1973 stadium it replaces across the street. It was designed by Populous, built by a Gilbane and Turner joint venture, and opened with a ribbon cutting on June 23, 2026.
By the Numbers
| Capacity | 60,108 (old stadium: 71,608) |
| Cost | $2.1 to $2.2 billion, the largest construction project in Western New York history |
| Owner / operator | State of New York / Legends |
| Architect / builders | Populous / Gilbane and Turner joint venture |
| Groundbreaking | June 5, 2023 |
| Opened | June 23, 2026 (ribbon cutting) |
| Surface | Natural grass (Kentucky bluegrass) with underground heating and grow lights |
| Canopy | 360 degree canopy covering about 64 percent of seats; field open to the sky |
| Snow system | Roof sensors and heated canopy described as the largest stadium snow melt system in the world |
| Seating | 34 degree seat incline; front rows about 54 feet closer to the field than before |
| Lease | 30 year lease with non relocation terms |
| First regular season game | Lions at Bills, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026, 8:15 p.m. ET on Prime Video |
Why It Is Smaller
The Bills traded roughly 11,000 seats for a steeper, tighter bowl on the theory that a smaller, louder building beats a cavernous one. Every seat is under a steeper rake, the front rows are closer to the field, and the canopy is designed to trap noise while leaving the field itself exposed to Buffalo weather. Personal seat licenses, a first for Bills season ticket holders, sold out at about 54,000.
Built for Winter
The most Buffalo features are the ones you cannot see. The natural grass field, a change from the old artificial turf, sits over heating coils that keep it from freezing, and the canopy carries sensors that detect snow load and activate heating to melt it, so the roof never has to be cleared by hand. The field itself was replaced just before the season after preseason games tore up large chunks of the original sod, which had been planted in October 2025 and sat unused for 10 months.
The Old Stadium
The original Highmark Stadium opened in 1973 as Rich Stadium and was later Ralph Wilson Stadium. The Bills played their final game there on January 4, 2026, a 35-8 win over the Jets. Power was cut that spring and mechanical demolition began in May; the site is expected to be cleared by early 2027. Seats and memorabilia from the old building were sold to fans.
Related
Lions vs. Bills how to watch · Thursday night weather · Odds · NFL standings
The Bottom Line
New Highmark Stadium: 60,108 seats, about $2.1 to $2.2 billion, a canopy over most of the crowd, a heated grass field and a snow melting roof. The Lions are the first regular season opponent, Thursday, September 17 at 8:15 p.m. ET.