Discover Santa Clara: San Francisco 49ers fans keep tailgating alive at Levi’s Stadium

By Loureen Ayyoub

Hours before kickoff, the parking lots outside Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara are already alive with the sounds of sizzling grills, laughter, and music. For San Francisco 49ers fans, tailgating isn’t just a pregame ritual, it’s a way of life.

Longtime fan Jacob Reyes has been part of the game-day scene for nearly two decades. Reyes said he goes to great lengths to make sure he’s part of the festivities each game.

“Getting up at 5 o’clock, 5:30 in the morning, when it’s dark, and my wife says, ‘You’re nuts to get up this early in the morning,'” Reyes said with a laugh.

For Reyes, tailgating is about more than food and football. Whether he’s manning the grill or preparing fresh salsa from a recipe passed down by his great-grandmother, he said the real magic comes from the people who gather there.

“To cross over all these lives, you visit with each other, you share everything with each other — that’s an elation, to be around everybody,” he said.

That spirit of generosity and hospitality, Reyes added, is what defines the 49ers’ tailgate culture.

“We are sharing with you. We enjoy that part,” he said. “It’s better to give than receive. And we really enjoy that part.”

As the team’s faithful fans unite before each game, their time-honored traditions continue to embody the camaraderie and community that have defined the 49ers for generations.