When NFL fans bust out heavy jackets, start a firepit, or wear beanies ahead of a football contest, that’s when you know the game they’re watching is going to be played in below-freezing temperatures.
Such was the case for Arrowhead Stadium, as the Kansas City Chiefs and Miami Dolphins walked into a rather icy grass field and snow on the ground. Weather like this is rare for KC. But to keep both teams warm, million-dollar reinforcements from a special heating system were already provided way ahead of Saturday’s AFC playoff game.
How Much Did Heating System Cost Ahead of Dolphins vs. Chiefs?
The Chiefs’ maintenance crew made sure the field conditions were prepped ahead of one of the coldest NFL games ever.
So the Chiefs went ahead and installed a $2.2 million heating system underneath the Arrowhead Stadium field.
But this system was implemented way before the Dolphins and Chiefs contest, plus way before the regular season — the 2016 season, to be exact.
“The three-year project to install this multi-million-dollar system concluded last spring with thousands of feet of pipe being installed underneath the playing surface,” the Chiefs confirmed.
So, what exactly was featured in this million-dollar heating system?
- Pipes that measure at a depth of nine inches below the stadium grass and are in a snake look.
- Each pipe is run from a boiler room.
- That boiler room features up to three different three-million BTU boilers, which start from underneath the stadium.
- The purpose of the boilers is to heat up the water that goes through the pipes and additionally heat the sand up under the field.
Imagine a thermostat inside a home. This technology helps become a field-like thermostat to help keep the field conditions warm.
A fun piece of info about tonight’s Chiefs-Dolphins game is that the Chiefs spent $2.2 million on a heating system under the field in 2016.
So while the wind chill is -30 degrees, the actual field itself will be heated to 50 degrees.
The pipes are 9 inches below the field. pic.twitter.com/88YQ048XuC
— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano)
But how warm did the field get? The pipes can make the field 50 degrees warm. But according to NBC Sports, who broadcasted the playoff game on Peacock, the field only warmed up to 40 degrees.
Is Chiefs-Dolphins the Coldest Game Ever?
This Chiefs and Dolphins battle is now in the top five for the coldest NFL playoff game ever.
Temperatures fell below -4 degrees by kickoff. The cold temperatures were accompanied by wind gusts reaching up to 27 miles per hour. With assistance from the winds, the wind chill dropped to below 27 degrees.
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That alone makes this contest the coldest game ever played at the historic NFL venue.
However, to this day, the famed 1967 “Ice Bowl” between the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers claims the title of coldest NFL playoff game ever.
That NFL championship contest was played in -13 degree weather conditions at Lambeau Field. Furthermore, the wind chill that day was an astonishing -48 degrees.
And that game was played before the idea of heating pipes under the stadium could be installed underneath a playing surface.
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