Early-season Chargers & Rams home games mean strong September sun, and three-plus hours on the wrong side of SoFi Stadium is a bake. Here's exactly where the shade falls, by sideline, corner and row, plus a free interactive map that ray-traces the sun for your specific game and kickoff time.
Pick your game & kickoff, watch the shade move across the bowl through the game.
The field runs roughly ESE-WNW. That's the key to everything: as the afternoon sun swings to the southwest and west, it pours onto the north-northeast side of the bowl, while the south-southwest side slides into shade first, the stands rising behind those seats block the sun.
Canopy note: SoFi Stadium's canopy covers much of the seating bowl, most mid and upper rows are shaded regardless. The advice below matters most for the lower rows nearest the field, which the canopy doesn't reach.
| Seats | Why they're shaded |
|---|---|
| South-southwest sideline, upper rows | First to shade as the sun moves west; the stands behind block the late-day sun |
| South-southwest sideline, club/mid level | Shades through the afternoon as the shadow line walks down the bowl |
| SSW corners | Pick up shade early from the adjacent south-southwest stands |
| End zones (upper rows) | Intermediate, shade arrives after the south-southwest sideline but before the north-northeast side |
The north-northeast sideline faces the afternoon sun and bakes the longest, especially the low rows, which are the last seats anywhere to shade. For a 1pm kickoff, assume front-row seats on any side are in the sun for at least the first half.
Early kickoffs start with a high sun, almost everything open is lit, and the south-southwest side shades as the game goes on. Late-afternoon kickoffs are where seat choice matters most: the south-southwest side can be comfortable from kickoff while the north-northeast side stares into the sun. Night games are shade-safe everywhere. Our tool models your exact game date and kickoff time.
Ready to buy shaded seats?
🎟 Los Angeles Chargers tickets on TicketNetwork 🎟 Los Angeles Rams tickets on TicketNetworkAffiliate links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Shade predictions come from a 3D ray-traced model of the seating bowl combined with the exact solar position for your date and kickoff time. Use it to pick a side, level and row range, then confirm the precise seat on a ticket map. Independent tool; not affiliated with the NFL or any team.
The rest of the NFC West, same treatment: