ESPN Survey: Venues Falling Short in Meeting Needs of Invisible Disabilities

According to a nationwide survey by ESPN, professional sports teams are largely addressing the needs of fans with sensory issues. Yet many stadiums still fall short when it comes to meeting a range of other needs of fans living with conditions known as invisible or non-visible disabilities.

Tens of millions of Americans live with conditions that are not immediately visible but have a major impact on their daily lives, including autism, brain injury, autoimmune diseases, chronic pain, mental illness, and hearing and vision loss.

Invisible disabilities are protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act, a 1990 law that prohibits discrimination and requires stadiums, arenas and other venues to provide accommodations. But those efforts have largely focused on physical accessibility features such as wheelchairs, ramps and elevators.

“People think, ‘Hey, let’s just do the minimum, we have X number of wheelchair spaces, that’s good enough,’” said Sherri Privitera, senior principal and senior architect at Populous, a firm that designs sports venues.

Advocates for people with invisible disabilities say they would like to see teams implement accommodations such as better drop-off areas and designated entrances for fans with disabilities, elevator access for fans who need it and even simple measures like printed menus at hot dog stands and better education for stadium employees.

Simply consciousness is a big problem.

For example, Pittsburgh Steelers fan Mikey Dedmon said her systemic lupus isn’t visible to most people and causes her problems in stadiums. She has trouble taking stairs, but she’s not allowed to use elevators and stadium staff has told her they’re reserved for people with disabilities.

ESPN surveyed 136 teams in the NFL, NBA, WNBA, MLB and NHL from November 2023 to July 2024 about whether they offer amenities that fans with invisible disabilities say would improve their game-day experience.

Of the 136 teams, 120 responded. In the NFL, the Broncos, Texans, Patriots, Cardinals and Bengals did not answer questions. In the MLB, the Brewers, Pirates, Mariners and Cubs did not answer questions. In the NBA, the Timberwolves declined to answer questions, and the Clippers responded before their move to the Intuit Dome. In the WNBA, the Lynx declined to answer questions. In the NHL, the Panthers, Sabres, Jets and Senators did not respond. (The Utah Hockey Club was omitted due to the team’s upcoming move to Salt Lake City.) Some teams did not answer all of the survey questions.

For fans, the challenges can begin when they arrive at a venue, and they suggested designated entrances for fans with disabilities. Less than half of the 120 teams that responded — 56% of NFL teams, 56% of NHL teams, 45% of NBA teams, 45% of WNBA teams and 24% of MLB teams — said they offer such entrances. Some said they offer a designated lane at the main entrance or at all gates. Teams were recorded as not offering designated entrances if they responded that all entrances are accessible or ADA compliant or that they offer mobility assistance or designated drop-off areas.

Dedmon, the fan who isn’t allowed on the elevator, said she wants to register for games online and be given a badge to wear so she doesn’t have to explain herself to staff. Of the 115 teams that responded to a question about whether they offer such badges, 42% said they do. Among leagues, 56% of NFL teams said they do, along with 46% in the MLB, 46% in the NHL, 28% in the NBA and 27% in the WNBA.

The nonprofit KultureCity, which focuses on sensory accessibility and provides disability identification badges to its partners, gave ESPN a higher number of venues issuing badges, saying teams don’t always know what venues have to offer.

Several fans said that buying concessions can be especially difficult. Standing in long lines can be overwhelming for people with autism, while people with visual impairments and hearing loss may have difficulty accessing and using menus. Rick Morin, a visually impaired Boston Red Sox fan, said the shift to digital kiosks has made it impossible for him to order. He can’t magnify the screen and there’s no voice output to help him hear the options.

“Those kiosks are completely inaccessible to us,” he said.

Amy Gomme, a deaf fan in New Mexico, said she wishes stadiums had more printed menus so she could point to a specific item. Just under a third of teams responding to ESPN said they offer printed menus at concession stands: 45% in the WNBA, 36% in the MLB, 34% in the NBA, 28% in the NHL and 21% in the NFL. In some cases, paper menus are available, but fans must ask for them. Teams that said menus are only available at guest services offices, hotel restaurants or sports bars were counted as “no” in the survey.

Climate Pledge Arena, home to the Seattle Kraken and Seattle Storm, told ESPN that it has reduced or eliminated paper waste, including physical menus, to be more environmentally friendly.

Changing technology has also impacted the experience of blind fans listening to games. While nearly all teams said they provide headsets or assistive listening devices — 100% of NBA teams, 88% NHL, 85% NFL, 82% WNBA and 72% MLB — fans told ESPN about broadcast delays.

“In the late ’90s, early 2000s, I could go to a football game and I could bring a transistor radio and I could put my headphones on and the radio would be in sync,” said Chad Allen, a blind sports fan from Boston. “But since streaming, everything is on delay.”

One area where teams have made significant progress is in providing a quiet space for neurodivergent fans. In 2017, Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena became the first sensory-inclusive arena in the U.S. Now, all 29 NBA teams that responded to ESPN say they have or are building sensory areas/rooms, along with 85% of NHL teams, 81% of NFL teams, 72% of MLB teams, and 64% of WNBA teams.

Eric DiMiceli, the NBA’s vice president of corporate social responsibility, described greater inclusivity as “a key issue for the league.” He said the NBA and WNBA are constantly looking to improve and ensure that teams consider invisible disabilities when designing the fan experience.

“We want to make sure our game is the most accessible and global game out there,” he said.

DiMiceli said the league responded to direct feedback from fans, including during the 2024 NBA All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis, where sensory bags were handed out containing items such as noise-canceling headphones or fidget tools.

“Some fans have said to us, ‘I felt uncomfortable bringing my child or family member to a sporting event … because I didn’t know what to expect,'” DiMiceli said. “‘But by having a space or receiving the kit, I knew I had a safe place to go if my child or family member had an issue.'”

Many teams are working with KultureCity to build such spaces. DiMiceli said the ability to convert different types of spaces helped more teams embrace the concept.

“It’s not a one-size-fits-all solution,” he said. “I think that’s made it easier for teams to adapt to this, because it can seem daunting at first.”

MLB officials did not respond to requests for comment, and an NHL spokesperson declined to comment. An NFL spokesperson told ESPN in a statement that the league “is committed to providing all fans — including those with disabilities — with a high-quality, welcoming experience. We work hard to provide the accommodations and access that allow everyone to fully enjoy the game they love.”

According to Privitera, the stadium’s architect, change has been slow, but teams have become more willing to embrace inclusivity in recent years, partly because issues like mental health have become less stigmatized.

Nearly every fan ESPN interviewed stressed the need to improve communication about invisible disabilities to educate stadium staff and fans. Jennifer Fink, a sports fan from Washington, D.C., who has sensory issues and anxiety, said more people with disabilities would attend games if they knew about available accommodations.

“A lot of people with disabilities that I know don’t even consider (sporting events) as an option. But if they knew these facilities existed, they might consider it,” she said. “I would potentially buy season tickets.”

Gomme said teams need to make provisions not only to help fans but also to increase their own profits.

“These leagues, these teams, are missing out on a new fan base, potential fans who would come to games if the experience was inclusive enough,” she said.

ESPN’s Sam Borden and John Mastroberardino contributed to this report.