From the weekend of October 17 through the weekend of December 19, Raymond James Stadium has something booked on seven of ten weekends. The three with nothing listed are October 24–25, November 14–15 and November 21–22. Everything else revolves around a kickoff or a show start a short drive north of Swann Circle Park.
The stadium's lots open hours ahead of each event. For a 1 p.m. Bucs game, they open at 9:30 a.m., three and a half hours before kickoff, so game traffic is already moving toward the stadium by mid-morning on a Sunday.
The ten weekends, laid out
The stadium's posted calendar as of mid-October, sorted by weekend:
| Weekend | On the stadium calendar | Lots open |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 17–18 | USF vs. Kent State, Sat 7 p.m.; Steelers vs. Bucs, Sun 1 p.m. | 2 p.m. Sat; 9:30 a.m. Sun |
| Oct 24–25 | Nothing listed | — |
| Oct 31–Nov 1 | USF vs. UAB, Sat, time TBD; Falcons vs. Bucs, Sun 1 p.m. | TBD Sat; 9:30 a.m. Sun |
| Nov 7–8 | Ed Sheeran, Sat | TBD |
| Nov 14–15 | Nothing listed | — |
| Nov 21–22 | Nothing listed | — |
| Nov 28–29 | USF vs. Tulane, Fri Nov 27 or Sat Nov 28, TBD | TBD |
| Dec 5–6 | Chargers vs. Bucs, Sun 1 p.m. | 9:30 a.m. Sun |
| Dec 12–13 | Chris Brown and Usher's R&B Tour, Fri and Sat, 7 p.m. show | TBD; gates 5:30 p.m. |
| Dec 19–20 | Gasparilla Bowl, Fri Dec 18, 2:30 p.m.; Saints vs. Bucs, Sun 1 p.m. | 11 a.m. Fri; 9:30 a.m. Sun |
Two of those weekends have events on both days. On October 17–18 and again on Halloween weekend, a USF game on Saturday is followed by a Bucs home game Sunday afternoon. Kickoff for the Halloween game against UAB is still listed as TBD. On the October 17–18 pair, the lots open at 2 p.m. Saturday and again at 9:30 a.m. Sunday.
The calendar also has events on weeknights, outside the weekend grid. USF hosts Memphis on Thursday, November 12, with an 8 p.m. kickoff and lots opening at 3 p.m. That afternoon's school pickups and commutes will overlap with arriving traffic. The Bucs host Carolina on Monday, November 30, at 8:15 p.m. The 2026 ReliaQuest Bowl has a noon kickoff on New Year's Eve, a Thursday, with the stadium's lots opening at 8 a.m.
What the roads did the last time the stadium filled up
Nobody has published a traffic plan for any October 2026 event yet. The two most recent big-show weekends show what the city and the Tampa Sports Authority tend to do.
For Metallica's two-show weekend in June 2025, Bay News 9 reported that Tampa Sports Authority officials expected heavy traffic on Dale Mabry, Himes, Columbus and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. They asked drivers who weren't going to the concert to use alternate routes. Tom McEwen Boulevard, also known as Tampa Bay Boulevard, closed between Dale Mabry and Himes from 11 a.m. Friday until traffic cleared after the Sunday show.
The BTS shows in April 2026 brought a longer closure. A City of Tampa traffic advisory said Tampa Bay Boulevard would close from 6 a.m. Wednesday, April 22, until 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 29, a full week covering three concert nights that each drew an expected crowd of more than 60,000. The advisory pointed people to HART buses and other alternatives and linked the city's road closures page for current updates.
Those were concert weekends, and the fall's concert dates are Ed Sheeran on November 7 and the two R&B Tour nights on December 11 and 12. For Bucs games, the team says the lots open three and a half hours before kickoff, accept only credit cards for day-of parking, and send all rideshare drop-offs and pickups to Steinbrenner Field. The stadium also says rideshare locations can move when pickup volume runs unusually high, and it sends drivers to Waze for real-time closures.
Where the open weekends point
With the stadium busy to the north, International Plaza at 2223 N. Westshore Boulevard is the other big draw near Beach Park, and the mall has added a lot this year. According to Tampa Newsroom, each of the 2026 additions is that brand's first Tampa Bay shop. BRITTO opened July 11, with Bissinger's Handcrafted Chocolatier and Rowan opening that same month.
The biggest change for a free Saturday night is on the dining side. The Tampa Bay Times reported in August that Ceviche Tapas Bar & Restaurant was coming back to Tampa after almost a decade. It sits just behind The Capital Grille, in the combined spaces that used to be Cafe Alma and the Corona Cigar Bar. The Times expected a September debut. Ceviche's own site now lists the International Plaza location with its Tampa menus, and the mall's directory shows daily hours.
The mall's front page still labels some stores "Coming Soon" that already show regular hours on their own directory pages. Going by those individual pages, here is where each addition stands:
- Open: Vuori, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids and Kendra Scott
- Still listed as coming soon, no date given: Dolce & Gabbana and Edikted
- Announced for fall 2026, status unconfirmed: Roberto Coin
- Next year: Banana Republic, which What Now Tampa reported will take a 5,450-square-foot space
Tampa Newsroom also reported plans by Lululemon and David Yurman to expand their current spaces later in 2026. That makes October 24–25 a good first look at the new stores. It's the only stadium-free weekend in October, and it falls between the two doubleheader weekends.
December, when the plaza and the stadium share Sundays
The overlap gets tighter in December. International Plaza's Santa Photos run from November 6 through December 24. The season opens the day before Ed Sheeran plays the stadium.
Two special sessions land on stadium weekends. A Special Visit with Caring Santa, a private event for children with special needs that requires reservations, is on Sunday, December 6. The mall's listing puts it at 10:30 a.m., which is one hour after the lots open for that afternoon's Chargers game. Pet Photos with Santa follow on Sunday, December 13, the day after the second R&B Tour night.
The busiest stretch is the week before Christmas. The Gasparilla Bowl kicks off at 2:30 p.m. on Friday, December 18, with lots opening at 11 a.m. The Bucs host the Saints two days later, with lots opening at 9:30 a.m. Sunday. Santa Photos still have four days left in the season after that. Of the ten weekends, November 14–15 and November 21–22 are the last two with nothing on the stadium calendar. They're also the only stadium-free weekends that fall inside the Santa Photos season.
If you'd like to talk through what this stadium calendar means for a home near Swann Circle Park, whether you're settling in or planning a move around next season's schedule, Andrea Webb knows Beach Park block by block and is glad to help. Let's Connect.
