SEATTLE -- In an effort to reestablish what was once one of the NFL's best home-field advantages, the Seahawks are trying to curb the resale of season tickets to fans of their opponents.
In a letter to season-ticket holders, a copy of which was obtained by ESPN, the Seahawks wrote that "renewal eligibility may be impacted if it is determined that your tickets were primarily used for resale purposes."
The crackdown comes on the heels of the Seahawks going 3-6 at home last season and two prominent players lamenting the large presence of opposing team's fans at Lumen Field.
"At the conclusion of each season, accounts that resell a majority of their season tickets will be contacted and given an opportunity to respond before any renewal eligibility decisions are made," the team said.
The Green Bay Packers -- who, like the Seahawks, have a long wait list for season tickets -- are also taking measures to maximize the number of their own fans at Lambeau Field. The team announced in February that, in a continuation of an exercise that has taken place the past few years, the organization declined to renew the season tickets of accounts that have sold 100% of their tickets for regular-season games for multiple years.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Indianapolis Colts are also among the teams that have attempted to crack down on the practice.
From 2012 to 2019, the Seahawks had the second-best home winning percentage (.750) in the NFL. Their 7-1 home record in 2020 was tied for best in the league, though there were no fans at Lumen Field that year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
But over the past four seasons, Seattle is tied for 20th (.471) in home winning percentage.
"We've got to get Lumen rocking again," general manager John Schneider said in February, one of two mentions he made then about the Seahawks wanting to regain their home-field advantage.
After an October loss to Buffalo, quarterback Geno Smith said it felt at times like the Seahawks were playing a road game because of all the Bills fans at Lumen Field. Packers fans also made their presence heard in a December win over Seattle, with chants of "Go Pack Go" audible from the press box, over the television broadcast and on the field.
"I know the first quarter, second or third play of the game, it got crazy loud in there, and I looked around and it was a lot of Green Bay fans," wide receiver DK Metcalf said. "So they did a great job traveling. But just wishing the 12s didn't sell as many tickets as they did to make sure we kept the home-field advantage."
That practice has cut both ways for the Seahawks, whose fans consistently travel well to opposing teams' stadiums. After beating the Atlanta Falcons in October for one of Seattle's franchise-record-tying seven road wins last season, coach Mike Macdonald acknowledged all the Seahawks fans who had made themselves heard at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
"It's great to be 7-1 on the road, but we've got to make this place a nightmare for teams that come in to play us and utilize our fans and the crowd and the 12s and kind of the whole '12 is 1' mantra," Macdonald said after the season. "We've really got to make that come to life when we're at Lumen, so that's going to be a major focus for us this offseason."
ESPN's Rob Demovsky, Jenna Laine and Stephen Holder contributed to this report.
