The traveling NFL Draft has become one of the best municipal branding platforms in sports — a three-day, nationally televised opportunity for cities to redefine how millions see them.
This year, Pittsburgh civic boosters hope the draft combats an outdated regional stereotype sometimes reinforced, ironically, by NFL broadcasters, who are fond of showing establishing shots of molten steel and factory workers during Steelers games.
During the April 23-25 event, Pittsburghers hope attendees and TV viewers see less industrial imagery and more of a city built on robotics, autonomous vehicles, artificial intelligence and medical research. Not to mention cultural attractions such as the Andy Warhol Museum and the beauty of its modern skyline nestled between steep hills and broad rivers.
“It’s a really, really unique opportunity for us to showcase what this region is in 2026 to people who might be thinking of what it may have been in 1986 or 1976,” said Jim Britt, vice president of sports events at Visit Pittsburgh. “And boy, it’s a completely different place than it was back then.”
Steelers owner Art Rooney II, whose team was founded by his grandfather in 1933, wants to promote the city’s historical contributions. To that end, the region’s long list of Pro Hall of Fame players and coaches, its iconic high school programs and important NFL moments in Pittsburgh will be celebrated throughout the week.
But also, Rooney says, don’t sleep on the simple aesthetic appeal that might take newcomers by surprise.
“For a city that’s considered a Rust Belt city, the mountains and the hills and the valleys and the rivers, geographically, it’s a really pretty place,” Rooney said. “And this time of year, with things just starting to bloom, if the weather cooperates, it’ll be great to show off that part of the city, and really how the city comes together to host something like this.”
The draft will be held in two locations: the North Shore, home to the Steelers’ Acrisure Stadium and the Pirates’ PNC Park, and Point State Park, the newly renovated park across the Allegheny River in downtown. It’s the first time since Nashville in 2019 that the draft footprint was broken up, said Jon Barker, the NFL’s senior vice president/global head of major events production. Pedestrian access will be via the Roberto Clemente Bridge, and 600 fans at a time can ride the Gateway Clipper river ferry.
“We have an event site that just happens to have a river running through it,” Barker said, “but they’re all interconnected, and the density of downtown Pittsburgh is that it’s one contiguous site.”
The draft stage will abut the stadium’s east side, with activation zones surrounding the stadium. In a major change from prior drafts, the field at Acrisure Stadium will also feature fan activations. (Prior drafts have opened the stadium seating bowl to fans, but made limited use of the field.)
Organizers will light bridges in team colors during picks, while the Andy Warhol Museum is contributing pop-art installations, said Peter O’Reilly, the NFL’s executive vice president of club business, league events and international.
But the big message will be football history. Along with the Steelers’ six Super Bowl titles, the region has generated 23 hall of famers, including Joe Montana, Johnny Unitas and Darrelle Revis. The NFL was founded two hours away in neighboring Ohio, and the league is always well-represented by alums of the local high school football powers.
Many of the men who embody that tradition will be on-site to announce picks. The NFL Films documentary about Pittsburgh, “The Football Town,” will run frequently on movie screens at Kamin Science Center near the stadium.
“The aerial visual of Terrible Towels as far as the eye can see, across both the North Shore and Point State Park … We’re going to celebrate hundreds of western Pennsylvania high school football players on the stage,” O’Reilly said. “Those moments are going to be significant.”
New NFL sponsor American Express will have a major sponsorship presence with presenting rights to the NFL Draft Experience, and Fanatics-owned Topps, which just became the NFL’s official trading card sponsor, will do a major fan event in the stadium on Day 3.
Pittsburgh is one of the smaller NFL markets, but is centrally located, with 11 NFL cities — including the first, third and fifth-largest ones — within a seven-hour drive. The league no longer officially projects crowds to the draft, Barker said, and duplications and inexact counting methodology make headline numbers unreliable. But Barker says: “I expect to see a very big crowd.” So does everyone else. Pittsburgh city schools will do remote-only learning during the draft.
Local organizers and the state raised $21 million to cover costs not handled by the NFL, including security and infrastructure. Of that, $5 million came from PNC Bank, among the Steelers’ longest-tenured sponsors and business partners.
PNC Executive Vice President Louis Cestello, who is also the local regional president, said the bank believes the draft can help its customers and workers thrive.
“We need Pittsburgh to be an A-plus city so we can attract and retain fantastic talent, which we feel we have here,” Cestello said. “This is probably the most significant event that can really showcase what Pittsburgh has to offer. It’s a fantastic place to live, work and raise a family, and we’re looking forward to showing it off to the world.”
