Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park
The ribbon was cut Tuesday on the completion of the new $2.1 billion Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park.
The massive public-private partnership marks the largest construction project in Western New York history, delivering a state-of-the-art, open-air entertainment venue that secures the Buffalo Bills franchise’s home in Buffalo for the next 30 years. Spanning 1.6 million square feet on a 242-acre site, the facility will host its first public event on August 8 with the Bills’ inaugural scrimmage game.
Governor Kathy Hochul said when she came into office in 2021, one of her first calls was to team owners Kim and Terry Pegula because she had heard they were frustrated with the lack of interest from the state in the new stadium, “When they needed a new stadium to keep them in this community, everything was on the line. We had to make this happen, and I had to reassure them that I would make sure this stadium got built because it is part of our identity. It is our psyche. It is what gets us up in the morning on a Monday morning with that sense of euphoria or at least hope for the next Sunday to be better. It’s what unites a community in such a powerful way. It’s unprecedented anywhere else.”
More than 600 guests gathered outside the stadium to celebrate the milestone, achieved just 34 months after the initial groundbreaking.
Interior of Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park
The new stadium replaces the original Highmark Stadium, which closed at the end of the 2025 season after being the home of Buffalo football since 1973.
The stadium will have a capacity of 60,108, about 11,500 less than the final capacity at the original Highmark Stadium. It will also have a natural grass playing surface, a change from the old stadium, which had turf.
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