An “expected hundreds of thousands of visitors” to downtown Pittsburgh and the North Shore on Thursday will “begin to converge along the three rivers” for the 2026 NFL Draft, an opportunity officials have “capitalized on as a means to sell Pittsburgh to the world.” The draft campus on the North Shore and Point State Park “spans nearly 4 million square feet,” with the “dome-shaped NFL Draft Theater beside Acrisure Stadium along Art Rooney Avenue.” Attendees will “stand in the parking lot in front of it,” while a “select few will be seated under the stage’s yellow and blue neon lights.” Nods to Pittsburgh “stand out on the stage, with replicas of the city’s iconic yellow sister bridges and Andy Warhol-inspired pop art NFL Draft graphics playing on 1,300 LED video panels." Across the river at Point State Park will be the “site of a free fan festival called the NFL Draft Experience” (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 4/22).
Visit Pittsburgh President & CEO Jerad Bachar said the city “modeled its estimate” of 500,000-700,000 over three days, or essentially 250,000 visitors per day. The Steelers have been “working with Visit Pittsburgh hand-in-hand” on the planning, and Visit Pittsburgh “visited Kansas City and Detroit to learn hosting best practices” for the event. The organization “also consulted with Philadelphia and Cleveland.” Steelers owner & President Art Rooney II added that it “could be the largest visitor event in the city’s history” (USA TODAY, 4/22).
