PATRIOTS TO HOST MARATHON INSIDE HOME STADIUM

RUNNER'S WORLD

You can try to rush for more than 46,000 yards on Gillette Stadium’s turf.

Football fans across the country now have yet another reason to be jealous of the New England Patriots.

Gillette Stadium, home of the five-time Super Bowl champions, will host its first marathon on September 28. The race is being billed as the only Boston Marathon qualifier ever run entirely in an NFL stadium.

Runners will be treated to a full “Friday night lights” experience with a 5 p.m. start, live music, and appearances by Patriots alumni and cheerleaders as they complete more than 100 laps around the field’s warning track to reach 26.2 miles. (No word on if the race will be started by traditional firing gun or by a referee whistle.)

Because of the tight confinements, only 100 bibs are available. All runners must meet a $5,000 fundraising goal, with proceeds benefiting the New England Patriots Foundation to combat homelessness in the region.

The event will be managed by Dave McGillivray Sports Enterprises, which hosted a similar marathon inside of Boston’s Fenway Park last fall.

The Patriots have a strong connection with running. Coach Bill Belichick ran a half marathon in 2014, and former linebacker Tedy Bruschi has run the Boston Marathon. Gillette Stadium hosts a 5K and 10K race each summer that finishes on the 50-yard line. Plus, who could forget James White’s game-winning two-yard touchdown run in overtime of Super Bowl LI?

Two days after the inaugural marathon, the Patriots will host the Dolphins. They most recently lost Super Bowl LII to the Philadelphia Eagles.