Ahead of the 2021-22 season, the Denver Broncos sold for a blockbuster $4.65 billion. The Walton-Penner group, which is mostly comprised of those associated with the vast Walmart fortune, had no issue with the hefty price tag.

The new Broncos ownership group is made up of one majority owner and a few minority owners (like former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and F1 race car driver Lewis Hamilton.) There is lots of money flowing around the team now, and it has fans thinking: Are the Broncos due for a new stadium sometime soon?

The Broncos' current stadium, Empower Field at Mile High, had its inaugural game in September of 2001. A 21-year-old stadium isn't necessarily old, especially in comparison to other stadiums around the league (like 65-year-old Lambeau Field.) But with NFL teams recently debuting and planning mega stadiums, Broncos fans are left wondering if a stadium of that size could be in the cards for the team in the future. And now with a very wealthy ownership group in charge of the Broncos, the chances at a new stadium got even better.

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock has been an advocate for the Broncos getting a brand new stadium, but he hopes it will remain in the city of Denver, rather than move somewhere else in the state.

“The ownership team, their eyes are wide open right now in terms of their responsibilities and their hopes for the team,” Hancock said. “As we've talked, I've made it very clear that my hope is that, one, we will keep open lines of communication with regards to the stadium, and the future stadium, and hopefully, that it remain in Denver, Colorado.”

In recent years the city of Denver has built up the area surrounding the Broncos stadium. These additions include multiple transportation options, easy-to-walk pathways to the stadium, apartment complexes, and much more. But with how much has been built around the current stadium, there aren't any immediate open areas nearby for a new stadium. So any future plans to build a new stadium will potentially have to start by looking at locations outside the city of Denver.

“It's a statewide gem for all of us,” said Hancock. “We'd love to see that gem stay in Denver. I said that to the ownership, and I let them know that whether I'm in this office or not, I'm available to talk about it.”

Broncos ownership recently announced a $100 million dollar refurbishment plan for Empower Field. With nine years still remaining on the Broncos' lease for the stadium, and a refurbishment plan in the works, any plans for a new stadium most likely won't come for many, many years.