Video of Bill's fan being asked to cover Trump shirt goes viral

He never imagined how much attention he would get after another fan recorded a video of a Highmark Stadium security guard telling him to cover his jersey because it was against team rules.

That video went viral and figures like U.S. Rep. Nick Langworthy have objected to Buffamonti's treatment at the game.

But the Town of Tonawanda resident insists he would never have worn the jersey if he had known the Bills wouldn't allow fans to wear clothing with political messages.

“I didn’t go there to cause trouble,” he said in an interview Monday.

Legal experts said the team, as a private company, has the power to decide what is allowed in the stadium. But that hasn't stopped critics from attacking the Bills and the NFL for their no-politics policies.

“We live in America. Don’t ban clothing because you hate the greatest movement in political history,” wrote Mike Sperrazza, a member of the Financial Guys team and the first person to widely share the video on X, in a post addressed to the league and was interrupted by swear words.

Buffamonti, owner of Backstage Productions and a season ticket holder, said Sunday's game against the Miami Dolphins was the first time he had worn pro-Trump gear at a Bills game.

Although not seen in the video circulating online, he also brought a “Trump 2024” flag to display at the game.

He wore a hooded sweatshirt over his Trump T-shirt but said he did not try to hide the T-shirt on the way to the game.

Buffamonti's seats are in the front row. He said it was toward the end of the first quarter when security came up to him and confronted him about the shirt and the flag he had held up a few times.

At first, Buffamonti said, a security guard told him the shirt and flag were fine. Then the security guard came back and said the flag wasn't allowed, but the shirt was fine, Buffamonti said.

Eventually, the security guard came by a third time and said apologetically that neither was allowed and that he had to zip up his hoodie, said Buffamonti, who complied.

At some point, another season ticket holder, James Raymond, sitting one row behind Buffamonti, began videotaping the encounters with security.

Raymond, a disabled Army veteran, said he couldn't believe team security made Buffamonti cover his shirt. In the video, Raymond can be heard shouting, “This is a free country,” among other objections.

“Dave was a gentleman. He was much better than me. I was so horrified that at that point I looked at my 11-year-old daughter and said, 'We have to go,'” Raymond told The Buffalo News.

They left shortly after halftime, said Raymond, who later posted the video on Facebook, where it was recorded and shared Sunday into Monday.

“FAR LEFT!” Erie County Republicans complained, calling enforcement of the policy “a joke.”

“Last I checked, we live in a free country! An enormous amount of tax subsidies flow into these stadiums. This is a disgrace,” Langworthy wrote in his own post.

Rules regarding restrictions on fans wearing “political” clothing are not uncommon. The Bills code of conduct simply states that fans are not allowed to wear “obscene clothing.”

However, team spokesman Derek Boyko referred The News on Monday to a stadium “AZ Guide” in which, under the letter “P” for “prohibited items,” a bullet point refers to “clothing or material containing vulgar language or obscene graphics or something similar.” Nature.”

The Bills have no further comment on the situation, Boyko said.

Nellie Drew, who teaches sports law at the University at Buffalo, said it doesn't matter that Erie County owns Highmark Stadium. The Bills lease the stadium from the county and have the right to set rules about what fans can wear, bring or do at the venue, she said.

There are no constitutional problems, she said, if the team applies the rule impartially.

“What I mean by that is they can’t arbitrarily allow Trump shirts and not allow Harris shirts,” Drew said.

Buffamonti said he was unaware of the rule and would not have worn the shirt or brought the flag if he had. He said he was just trying to send a message to any undecided voters who might see him at the game.

At some point, Buffamonti pulled down the zipper of his hoodie. Then a guard came to him again and told him to keep his shirt covered.

“I said, 'What would happen if I didn't have a hoodie and this is my shirt?' What would you have told me to do?' said Buffamonti. “They said, 'Well, we'd like you to flip it.' ”

Many Trump supporters have been known to show their support and wear “Make America Great Again” gear.

This has sparked controversy at other stadiums where fans wearing Trump gear have been stopped by stadium staff, including earlier this NFL season at the homes of the San Francisco 49ers and Arizona Cardinals.

Buffamonti said he wasn't looking for confrontation and that the situation was somewhat embarrassing – especially for his wife.

“Throughout the game she said, 'I'm just watching the game.' “I’m not part of it,” he said.