Niners starting to find their home-field advantage at Levi’s Stadium

It probably felt like an eternity for fans who remembered the good times the 49ers enjoyed at their previous home, the wind tunnel known as Candlestick Park.

Levi’s Stadium became the 49ers’ friendly confines just in time last season. The 49ers won their final four home games to make a push into the playoffs.

Would you believe that’s their longest win streak in their eight seasons since moving to Santa Clara?

Perhaps making that stretch even more remarkable: The 49ers did not win at home for more than a year (393 days), until they beat the Rams last Nov. 15 in a Monday night breakthrough.

“That’s how we expect to play here and it’s been long overdue,” coach Kyle Shanahan said afterward.

It probably felt like an eternity for fans who remembered the good times the 49ers enjoyed at their previous home, the wind tunnel known as Candlestick Park. The 49ers won nearly 70 percent of the games they ever played there. They once won 19 straight regular season home games at the ‘Stick, a streak that began in December 1996 and didn’t end until October 1999, a span of … 1,029 days.

“The Faithful has stayed faithful through ups and downs, and I’m happy that we got this one,” linebacker Fred Warner said after last season’s breakthrough.

Many of the Faithful probably remember that victories didn’t start piling up at Candlestick overnight, either. And Kezar Stadium, the 49ers’ original home, had its share of challenges.

After winning their home finale last season against Houston, the 49ers prevailed on the road in three elimination games – the regular-season finale at the Los Angeles Rams, then playoff triumphs at Dallas and Green Bay – before an NFC Championship Game loss back in L.A. at SoFi Stadium.

Two years earlier, the 49ers won the NFC Championship Game at home.

All of which raises the question: Is home-field advantage taking root at Levi’s Stadium, which is entering its ninth season as the Niners’ home? Late-season momentum suggests that, but what about overall?

Here’s a look at the 49ers’ home record since Levi’s Stadium opened:

2014: 4-4

2015: 4-4

2016: 1-7

2017: 3-5

2018: 4-4

2019: 6-2 (plus 2-0 in playoffs)

2020: 1-4 (0-3 in the final three home games that were played in Arizona because of Santa Clara County’s COVID-related health ordinance.)

2021: 4-4

Overall: 27-34 in regular-season games, 2-0 in the playoffs.

How does that compare to the 49ers’ previous homes?

From 1946-1970 at Kezar Stadium, the 49ers’ regular season record was 95-61-1, and they were 1-2 in playoff games.

From 1971-2013 at Candlestick Park, the 49ers went 205-124-2 in the regular season, with a playoff record of 20-7.

After the 49ers lost their first four home games last season, Levi’s ranked 73rd out of 76 stadiums in all-time home-field advantage since 1970. Then came the four-game home winning streak to end the regular season that propelled the team into the playoffs for the second time in three years. As the 49ers reversed course, they were touting their home-field experience by season’s end, including fans’ approval.

“We saw our highest fan survey scores that we’ve ever seen here at Levi’s Stadium, and that’s a testament to all of you (fans) helping us work through the kinks as we opened this building back up,” 49ers president Al Guido said at the state-of-the-franchise talk in June before VIPs inside the team’s museum.

Big moments and wins will help build Levi’s reputation, but so will time.

Kezar Stadium, built on the southeastern corner of Golden Gate Park in the 1920s, was largely known for its cold weather, awful sight lines, rowdy fans, undersized (but splinter-filled) seats and a serious lack of parking around the 59,000 seat stadium, where Vikings defensive end Jim Marshall infamously made his “wrong way run” to his own end zone against the 49ers in 1964.

But it was home.

“On Sundays, driving through Golden Gate Park, you’d see thousands of people walking to the stadium,” the 49ers Museum quotes late 49ers quarterback Y. A. Tittle “You could feel the energy. The surroundings were nice. The fans could be rough sometimes, and the seagulls could get annoying, but it was a beautiful place to play.”

Candlestick wasn’t much better in terms of the weather.

“There weren’t a whole lot of places that were worse,” Joe Montana once said.

It also became the home field for five Super Bowl championship teams, 80 Pro Bowl players and 22 Hall of Famers. The 49ers won 19 division titles there, and the ‘Stick hosted eight NFC championship games. And, of course, It will always be known to 49ers fans as the place where Dwight Clark made “The Catch” against the Cowboys that sent the team to its first Super Bowl.

And even before Levi’s opened, 49ers greats understood the porch light had been passed to the franchise’s new home.

“I hate that 49ers won’t be playing on that field where all the Super Bowls were won, but I totally understand it,” Clark, who died in 2018, said in the final days of the 49ers’ run at Candlestick. “The new place is going to be awesome, and they’ll be able to make great new historic moments there.”

The signature moment at Levi’s was, initially, when Richard Sherman and Russell Wilson ate turkey after a 2014 Thanksgiving win by the rival Seahawks, but then came the 2019 season’s NFC Championship Game celebration, so it’s as if the stadium is still awaiting its marquee play. Those come in the playoffs, and Levi’s has hosted only two postseason games (January 2020 wins over the Vikings and the Packers). So maybe that ultimate thrill comes this January. Or maybe Trey Lance throws an 80-yard touchdown in the home opener against the Seahawks, now Wilson/Sherman-less.

Next up? Technology updates around the stadium, new sponsors and more grand visions.

“We’re really starting to think about Levi’s 2.0 and what that means,” Guido said. “There can be renovations down the road in the stadium that can enhance the fan experience.”

Looking ahead to Levi’s Stadium’s second decade of existence, business will be booming, regardless of how well the 49ers (and new quarterback Trey Lance) fare, and beyond the annual blare of concerts plus the 2026 World Cup.

Construction is hot and heavy on a massive mixed-use development north of Levi’s Stadium. A 240-acre project will feature 9 million square feet, with nearly a half-million square feet devoted to restaurants and entertainment venues, amid 1,680 residential units, 700 hotel rooms, office buildings (5.4 million square feet), park space and more.

One patch of grass means the most to the 49ers: the 8-year-old field where Super Bowl dreams will be rekindled this fall, starting with a Week 2 home opener against the Seattle Seahawks on Sept. 18.

Other home dates: Oct. 3 (vs. Rams), Oct. 23 (vs. Chiefs), Nov. 13 (vs. Chargers), Nov. 27 (vs. Saints), Dec. 4 (vs. Dolphins), Dec. 11 (vs. Bucs), Dec. 24 (vs. Commanders) and Jan. 8 (vs. Cardinals).

“We’ve got to take care of home field,” Guido added. “… I fully expect and hope you’re there when we open our home schedule and you’re there the rest of the time.”