as someone who particularly enjoys the pomp and circumstance of sports, i have always wanted to experience a game at arrowhead. the chiefs have been on a pretty good run lately and knowing we are likely nearing the end of the mahomes kelce era it seemed now was the time, so we snagged some tickets in the last row of the stadium for a monday night game.
determined to maximize the adventure we showed up as the parking lot gates opened with a slab of jack stack ribs in hand. the kc tailgating scene is legendary, so we wandered around a bit to soak in the ambiance and my "first game" sign drew a good bit of attention. i ended up getting a photo with the kc wolf and we later found ourselves in very close proximity to mama kelce, which felt particularly magical since that basically put us one degree away from taylor.
when the stadium gates opened we headed in with plans to visit the hall of fame and just generally explore, but were instead surprised that we were allowed to go right down next to the field. the monday night football crew, including jason kelce, was set up for the pregame broadcast so we watched that up close for a bit before moving over to the chiefs sideline to see the team warm up and the players greet their families.
the game itself was a delight. we had a great view from our upper deck seats and the atmosphere in our section was good. we enjoyed the pregame performances and the excitement of the team introductions. the chiefs played well which resulted in lots of fireworks and opportunities to dance to "fight for your right" and we witnessed the mahomes kelce touchdown that gave travis the tie for the most in chiefs history.
then with about six minutes left in the game donald leaned over and said he had some good news. his cousin dane was at the game with friends from their church, one of whom happens to be a strength and conditioning coach for the chiefs, and they were in possession of two extra field passes for after the game. we met up with them in the friends and family room, profusely thanking them for inviting us along. i had no idea what to expect and it all happened so fast i could hardly process what we were seeing. we were led through a series of hallways and suddenly found ourselves walking through the locker room club and the players tunnel out onto the chiefs sideline.
it was wild experience to go from upper deck seats to standing in the middle of the stadium on the 50 yard line. we hung out on the field for awhile enjoying the victory vibes alongside butker and leo, and snagged a pic with a juju photobomb. when it was time to head home we walked out the entrance tunnel and ended up in the private players parking lot with their assigned parking spots.
needless to say, it was a wonderful night. i expected to love the game day experience, but i was surprised by just how captivating it was. there really is no place like arrowhead.