NFL Draft fan registration now open
Steelers Nation, this is your chance to attend the 2026 NFL Draft and see – in person – who the Pittsburgh Steelers draft with the 21st overall pick.
Pittsburgh will play host to the draft from April 23-25, and fans can now register for free entry to the event by visiting NFL.com/DraftAccess or downloading the NFL OnePass app. OnePass includes draft updates, alerts, notifications, and schedules, all updated in real time.
An estimated 500,000 to 700,000 visitors – more than 10 times Acrisure Stadium’s 68,400 seats, and more than double the city’s roughly 308,000 residents – are expected to descend on Downtown Pittsburgh, which would make it the largest event the city has ever hosted.
“The NFL Draft is a massive annual celebration of football and community, and Pittsburgh provides a spectacular stage to welcome residents and fans from all over the world,” said Peter O’Reilly, NFL executive vice president of club business, international and league events.
In preparation for the event, Allegheny General Hospital, a level 1 trauma center in Pittsburgh, staged a mass casualty training exercise on Thursday morning.
“We do these twice a year, but this is timely because of the upcoming draft,” said Dr. Brent Rau, medical director for the emergency department at AGH.
Nearly 30 volunteer actors and staff members were moulaged – prepared with simulated traumatic injuries by special effects artists – to resemble victims of a mass shooting.
Rau said the hospital has prepared for large events like the U.S. Open, concerts, and Steelers games, but noted the draft will be one of the largest gatherings in the city’s history.
AHN staff has met with NFL executives and has talked with hospital officials from Detroit and Green Bay – both of which have hosted the draft – about scenarios they might encounter.
“We want to get everybody on the same page for the NFL Draft, and how it will affect issues like transportation,” said Rau. “We do everything we can to make it as realistic as possible.”
Staff members were made aware that the shooting incident was a drill shortly before the exercise kicked off.
Most of the action occurred outside the emergency department – a triage tent was set up outside of the hospital – and normal operations were not disrupted, said Rau, who played the part of a victim who sustained a gunshot wound to the head.
“The residents didn’t know what was going to happen until they got the text about it. They were in lecture, and then they ended up in a mass casualty event,” said Rau.
The NFL had held the draft, which started in 1936, in New York for decades, before taking it on the road in 2015. It has been hosted in smaller cities, including Detroit and Nashville, in recent years.
The Draft Theater, a stage where the NFL’s 32 teams will make their player picks, will be built on the North Shore next to Acrisure Stadium, and an NFL Draft Experience interactive theme park will be located across the river at Pittsburgh’s Point State Park.
Fans will be able to go back and forth between the two sites by walking over the Roberto Clemente Bridge, which will be closed to vehicles, or by taking a ride on the Gateway Clipper.
At the Draft Experience, the Vince Lombardi trophy and all 59 Super Bowl rings will be on display, Visit Pittsburgh officials said.
Fans will have access to player meet-and-greets, NFL Hall of Fame exhibits and activities, including a field goal-kicking area and a 40-yard dash. Acrisure Stadium itself also will be open to fans.
And, leading up the draft, NFL Films, in partnership with Visit Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Steelers is showing “The Football Town,” a documentary about the area’s rich football tradition. The film will be played at Kamin Science Center’s Rango’s Giant Cinema next door to Acrisure Stadium through April 25.
The 2026 NFL Draft presented by Bud Light will be broadcast live on NFL Network, ABC, ESPN and ESPN Deportes, and will be available to stream on NFL+. Round 1 begins Thursday, April 23, followed by Rounds 2 and 3 on Friday, April 24 and Rounds 4 through 7 on Saturday, April 25.