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Green Bay Packers fans can smoke in stands? No, state law prohibits that | Fact check

brieanna j. frank, usa today
·3 min read
4

The claim: Green Bay Packers will allow fans to smoke in the stands next season

A May 12 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) includes an image of fans packing the stands of Lambeau Field and claims the Green Bay Packers have made a change to the Wisconsin football stadium's policy.

“BREAKING: The Green Bay #Packers will allow fans to smoke cigarettes, vapes and Delta-8 pre-rolls in the stands during games for the upcoming #NFL season,” reads the text on the image, which is a screenshot of a post on X, formerly Twitter. “Lambeau Field is an open stadium and will now be the ONLY NFL venue to allow smoking within its own stands.”

It received more than 150 shares in two days. Other versions of the claim spread widely on Instagram and X.

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Our rating: False

Representatives for the Green Bay Packers and the National Football League said the claim is false. Wisconsin state law bans smoking at sports facilities, and changes to Lambeau Field’s smoking policy would therefore have to happen through legislation. There have not been proposals to change the policy during the current legislative session.

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Wisconsin state law bans smoking in sports arenas, which it defines as “any stadium… where spectator sporting events are held.”

Accordingly, there are “no designated smoking areas inside Lambeau Field,” Green Bay Packers spokesperson Aaron Popkey said.

A worker clears snow from a sidewalk near Lambeau Field on April 3, 2024, in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Heavy, wet snow is being dumped on much of Northeastern Wisconsin, with as much as a foot expected in some areas before it is forecasted to end later this afternoon.
A worker clears snow from a sidewalk near Lambeau Field on April 3, 2024, in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Heavy, wet snow is being dumped on much of Northeastern Wisconsin, with as much as a foot expected in some areas before it is forecasted to end later this afternoon.

Any changes to Lambeau Field’s smoking policy would have to happen through legislation, but there haven’t been efforts to do so.

“There were no proposals introduced in the current legislative session to exempt sports arenas from the state prohibition on smoking,” said Ryan LeCloux, a senior legislative analyst at the Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau.

The smoking ban covers cigars, cigarettes, pipes and “any other lighted smoking equipment” containing tobacco, according to state law.

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Local governments can impose additional restrictions on smoking in public places, and sports facilities can opt to “allow devices or products that are not specifically prohibited” under state or local law, LeCloux said.

Lambeau Field, for example, is a “smoke-free facility” that also bans electronic cigarettes, according to the team’s website.

A bill that sought to expand the state smoking ban to include electronic smoking devices and marijuana products was introduced in the state legislature in February but failed to pass.

National Football League spokesperson Tim Schlittner also said the social media claims were false and added that no stadiums in the league allow smoking in the stands.

USA TODAY reached out to users who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: False claim Packers fans will be able to smoke in stands | Fact check