Several weeks ago, NFL fans were taken aback by how many San Francisco 49ers fans were in attendance for their road game against the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium. The Rams and their fans were “caught off guard” by the number of visiting fans who turned the venue into a sea of red.
On Sunday, the same thing happened, but this time three thousand miles away in New Jersey, where the Niners were facing the New York Giants.
The San Francisco fans were so prevalent that the home Giants had to use a silent signal count on offense on some plays due to the noise.
Late in the game, after the contest was all but decided, Giants fans began to filter out to get ahead of the traffic, but Niner fans stuck around and took over. It was a surreal feeling for the Giants fans who stayed and the players on the field.
“That was interesting,” Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart said after the 34-24 loss, the team’s third straight. “I’ve never played at a home game where I felt like it was kind of lopsided in that department. But they have a good fan base, and they traveled well.”
Years ago, this would never have happened. First off, it was too expensive and cumbersome to travel, and second, few home fans got rid of their tickets.
That’s no longer the case. Fan clubs have ways to get their hands on cheap travel packages and blocks of seats, plus anyone can find a ticket to any event these days in the secondary ticket market. Niner fans appear to be one of the top fan bases when it comes to engaging in these practices.