Parking lot parties
Houston's NRG Stadium is surprisingly affordable for tailgaters
There's nothing like a Texans tailgate party.
NFL football is back in action, and there's no better way to celebrate the return of your favorite team than with a classic tailgate. Dedicated Houston Texansdon't have to dip too deeply into their finances to tailgate atNRG Stadium this year, as a new report has revealed the stadium is in the bottom half of the NFL's most expensive tailgating destinations in America.
Online sports betting experts Oddspedia ranked 30 stadiums nationwide based on their parking costs, food and drink prices, and overall average tailgate costs. (As a note, tailgate costs for NFL teams that share a stadium were the same.)
The estimated cost of tailgating for four Texans fans at NRG Stadium comes out to $194.15, which is the 17th highest tally out of all 30 stadiums on the list. Fans of the Texans – America's 12th most valuable team – are spending about five percent less on their ultimate tailgate experience than the national average, which is $205.17.
In the national comparison of just food and drink costs, Texans fans tied with Dallas Cowboys fans for the sixth-highest grocery costs. To feed four hungry tailgaters on either team, the average grocery trip cost comes out to $154.15, which covers ingredients for "cheeseburgers, hotdogs, Italian subs, chicken wings, pretzels[,] chips and dips," among other culinary necessities.
Lucky for fans who watch the games from the stands, they'll get the privilege of enjoying Truth BBQ at sections 109 and 129.
Additionally, fans can rest a little easier knowing that a good chunk of that overall cost won't get eaten up by puling into a top parking spot at NRG Park. The report found parking at NRG Stadium costs $40, which is more affordable than the average cost for parking across all 30 stadiums, which came out to $57.38. (Official rules for tailgating at NRG Stadium can be found here.)
The most committed Texans fans can also take pride (for many reasons) that they aren't rooting for the Dallas Cowboys, as tailgating at AT&T Stadium in Arlington costs $242.15 for four people. Dallas Cowboys fans are saddled with the third highest tailgate costs in the U.S., according to the report.
The top 10 NFL teams with the most expensive tailgating experiences are:
- No. 1 – San Francisco 49ers, Levi's Stadium ($292.33)
- No. 2 – Los Angeles Rams/Chargers, SoFi Stadium ($257.75)
- No. 3 – Dallas Cowboys, AT&T Stadium ($242.15)
- No. 4 – Philadelphia Eagles, Lincoln Financial Field ($238.32)
- No. 5 – Washington Commanders, Commanders Field ($224.10)
- No. 6 – Cincinnati Bengals, Paycor Stadium ($217.16)
- No. 7 – Miami Dolphins, Hard Rock Stadium ($216.14)
- No. 8 – New York Giants/Jets, MetLife Stadium (211.20)
- No. 9 – Denver Broncos, Empower Field at Mile High ($210.77)
- No. 10 – New England Patriots, Gillette Stadium ($210.64)
The study analyzed costs of a tailgate experience for a group of four people, including cost of parking in the tailgate zone for the first games of the season, and a list of "essential party foods and drinks" (a.k.a. local groceries) to kick off the festivities.
The full report and its methodology can be found on oddspedia.com.
