







window._taboola = window._taboola || []; _taboola.push({ mode: 'thumbnails-c', container: 'taboola-interstitial-gallery-thumbnails-5', placement: 'Interstitial Gallery Thumbnails 5', target_type: 'mix' });









window._taboola = window._taboola || []; _taboola.push({ mode: 'thumbnails-c', container: 'taboola-interstitial-gallery-thumbnails-10', placement: 'Interstitial Gallery Thumbnails 10', target_type: 'mix' });









window._taboola = window._taboola || []; _taboola.push({ mode: 'thumbnails-c', container: 'taboola-interstitial-gallery-thumbnails-15', placement: 'Interstitial Gallery Thumbnails 15', target_type: 'mix' });









window._taboola = window._taboola || []; _taboola.push({ mode: 'thumbnails-c', container: 'taboola-interstitial-gallery-thumbnails-19', placement: 'Interstitial Gallery Thumbnails 19', target_type: 'mix' });





























Photo: The Chronicle Image 1 of / 20 Caption Close Image 2 of 20 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh, right, looks on during a ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh, right, looks on during a ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Photo: The Chronicle Image 3 of 20 Santa Clara mayor Jamie Matthews, left, and 49ers CEO Jed York cut the ribbon officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Santa Clara mayor Jamie Matthews, left, and 49ers CEO Jed York cut the ribbon officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Photo: The Chronicle Image 4 of 20 49ers CEO Jed York stand on stage with his wife Danielle and their son Jaxon following the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. 49ers CEO Jed York stand on stage with his wife Danielle and their son Jaxon following the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Photo: The Chronicle Image 5 of 20 Image 6 of 20 49ers CEO Jed York, left, walks off stage with his wife Danielle and their son Jaxon following the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. 49ers CEO Jed York, left, walks off stage with his wife Danielle and their son Jaxon following the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Photo: The Chronicle Image 7 of 20 49ers CEO Jed York, right, holds his son Jaxon with his wife Danielle following the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. 49ers CEO Jed York, right, holds his son Jaxon with his wife Danielle following the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Photo: The Chronicle Image 8 of 20 49ers CEO Jed York poses with construction workers who worked on the stadium following the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. 49ers CEO Jed York poses with construction workers who worked on the stadium following the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Photo: The Chronicle Image 9 of 20 49ers CEO Jed York shakes hands with construction workers who worked on the stadium following the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. 49ers CEO Jed York shakes hands with construction workers who worked on the stadium following the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Photo: The Chronicle Image 10 of 20 Image 11 of 20 49ers CEO Jed York shakes hands with construction workers who worked on the stadium following the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. 49ers CEO Jed York shakes hands with construction workers who worked on the stadium following the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Photo: The Chronicle Image 12 of 20 49ers CEO Jed York speaks during a ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. 49ers CEO Jed York speaks during a ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Photo: The Chronicle Image 13 of 20 A man wearing 49ers glasses attends the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. A man wearing 49ers glasses attends the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Photo: The Chronicle Image 14 of 20 49ers cheerleaders walk up a stairwell before the start of the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. 49ers cheerleaders walk up a stairwell before the start of the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Photo: The Chronicle Image 15 of 20 Image 16 of 20 Levi's CEO Chip Bergh points to his 49ers themed Levi's jacket while answering questions before the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. less Levi's CEO Chip Bergh points to his 49ers themed Levi's jacket while answering questions before the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, ... more Photo: The Chronicle Image 17 of 20 49ers CEO Jed York answers questions before the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. 49ers CEO Jed York answers questions before the ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Photo: The Chronicle Image 18 of 20 49ers CEO Jed York speaks during a ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. 49ers CEO Jed York speaks during a ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Photo: The Chronicle Image 19 of 20 Santa Clara mayor Jamie Matthews, center right, and 49ers CEO Jed York, center left, pose for a picture with members of their families after cutting the ribbon and officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, Thursday, July 17, 2014. less Santa Clara mayor Jamie Matthews, center right, and 49ers CEO Jed York, center left, pose for a picture with members of their families after cutting the ribbon and officially opening Levi's Stadium in Santa ... more Photo: The Chronicle Image 20 of 20 49ers new stadium: charm will be in what happens inside 1 / 20 Back to Gallery

Thursday was a day for giant red scissors and red and gold confetti shot from cannons.

It was not a day for understatement.

“This is the most amazing stadium on the face of the planet,” said Levi’s CEO Chip Bergh, shortly before he helped cut the ribbon on the new stadium that bears his company’s name.

Perhaps it is. The non-San Francisco 49ers new stadium, in the shadow of a roller coaster and directly in the flight path for San Jose International Airport, is the newest stadium – if not on the face of the planet at least in the NFL. The first new NFL stadium built in California since 1967.

So, as the newest, it is probably the best on many levels. And will likely remain so until the next one opens.

It is an enormous structure of steel and concrete and corporate branding. The 49ers claim it is the most technologically advanced stadium in the league – again, as the newest, it had better be. It is full of wow factors, most notably two overwhelming HD video boards at either ends of the stadium, the most notable parts the building’s profile.

But there’s a reason that NFL stadiums are not known for their charm. There’s a reason that you rarely hear of people taking pilgrimages to all 31 stadiums – it’s not the same romantic journey as baseball fans make to the nation’s ballparks.

NFL stadiums are big, impersonal, infrequently used and tend to be the same, depending on what era they were built in. Candlestick and the Oakland Coliseum belong to one era: the concrete bowl age. And for a populace accustomed to narrow concourses, broken elevators and a lack of amenities, the new Levi’s Stadium will be a delight. That is, as long as they can afford to get in.

(We bring up the Oakland Coliseum because NFL commissioner Roger Goodell also, indirectly, referred to it in his press conference. While calling the 49ers “the Bay Area’s team,” Goodell said that the Raiders “have to make that determination, whether they’re in a new stadium in Oakland or whether they feel that it’s best to join this stadium.” So a shared stadium definitely remains in play from the league’s point of view).

At Levi’s Stadium, there are broad concourses, enormous club areas, glassed-in luxury suites, big screens everywhere and a top end restaurant. All the amenities that new stadiums have.

Few NFL stadiums are truly unique. One is Lambeau Field in Green Bay, exceptional because of its environment, its staying power and its history. Of the new stadiums, one in particular stands out: CenturyLink Field in Seattle. Yes, it is noteworthy for its noise, but mostly for its location: an outdoor stadium in a downtown area surrounded by bars and restaurants. It is the rare NFL stadium with ambience.

Santa Clara doesn’t offer that kind of ambience. Though Santa Clara mayor Jamie Matthews promised an entertainment zone that will be “unrivaled outside of Union Square,” and proclaimed that there will be “a there there,” for the fans, the “there” isn’t in place yet.

Next door is Great America amusement park, complete with the tower from which Goodell first saw the empty site. Visible from the roof is a hazy outline of downtown San Jose and the airport landing strips. Thursday’s ceremony was routinely interrupted by deafening plane noise (a regular occurrence at the 49ers training facility). Promises to divert flight paths during 49ers games were met with general skepticism, given the airport’s longtime history of neighborhood complaints.

In short, the stadium doesn’t offer anything to make it the NFL’s equivalent of AT&T Park. One description offered up on Thursday was “sterile.” But, in its own way, that’s a perfect fit for Silicon Valley. After all, silicon chips are manufactured in highly sterile environments.

The very fact of the stadium is an accomplishment. Team CEO Jed York was the man of the hour, having guided the project after being appointed by his parents to run the team while in his mid-20s. All the twists and turns in the 49ers quest for a new stadium make the Great America roller coasters look linear by comparison. Yet York managed to, first, get a stadium deal put together and then to get the structure built in 819 days.

York choked up talking about getting to share time in the stadium with his young son Jax. A nice touch was when the workers in their hardhats, safety vests, and “I built Levi’s Stadium” T-shirts, came down the red carpets and were honored with a standing ovation.

Finally, the 49ers have a new stadium. Nobody knows what it will truly be like as a game environment until it is filled with fans, until we see how the wind comes through the open areas, learn if the sound will truly reverberate off the suite tower as hoped, find if the traffic is manageable.

It is sparkling. It is new. But the charm will only come from what happens on the field.

As the confetti fell to the ground, former 49ers center Jesse Sapolu stood in the back of the ceremony, looking on with a bemused expression.

“I wouldn’t,” he said, “trade my days at Candlestick for anything.”