WELCOMING FANS BACK TO STADIUMS. NEW PROTOCOLS, A RISKY BET?

As the return of live sports draws closer, teams and leagues are figuring out how to eventually welcome back fans. Let's take a look of whats going on in the U.S. and Europe to check what are the Federations, leagues and teams are doing to welcome back fans.

Miami Dolphins' bet.

For the Miami Dolphins that will mean a drastic reduction in stadium capacity and several new guidelines to keep fans safe. 13,000 fans will be allowed to attend the Dolphins’ home opener Sept. 20 against the Buffalo Bills and the Miami Hurricanes’ Sept. 10 home opener against University of Alabama-Birmingham What's Changing For 2020?

GBAC Accreditation

• Establishing and maintaining a cleaning, disinfection and infectious disease prevention program to control and minimize risk

Minimum Contact Stadium

• Touchless security scan at all gates

• Touchless restrooms

• No cash accepted

General Areas

• Minimum congregation in concourse areas

• Different time slots for entry

• A row-by-row exit process

• Fans having to wear masks

• Increased sanitization of all surfaces including escalator handrails, tables, etc.

• Additional hand sanitizing stations on the concourse

• Capacity restrictions in certain areas such as the team store

Employees

• Masks required

• Touchless temperature checks

• All trained to comply and enforce COVID-19 safety guidelines

• Mandatory health assessment

Food & Beverage

• Express lane pick-up

• Mobile ordering

• Removal of food and drink hawkers

• Removal of condiment stands

Sports Illustrated reported that teams could lose $100M in local revenue if games are played without fans.

And, what's happening in Europe?

The UEFA Executive Committee decided on 25 August to allow the 2020 UEFA Super Cup to be played with a reduced number of spectators – up to 30 % of the capacity of the stadium – in order to study precisely the impact of spectators on the UEFA Return to Play Protocol. The UEFA Administration will keep monitoring the situation and advise the UEFA Executive Committee if any change is required or recommended.

The match will see Europa Leauge winners Sevilla FC pitted against Champions League victors FC Bayern München.  UEFA category four venue Puskás Aréna, opened last year in place of the old Ferenc Puskás Stadium, can seat nearly 68,000 fans. 

It is not clear if the 20,000 stadium capacity will be made up of fans of Bayern Munich and Sevilla allowed to fly into Hungary, or if only local football supporters will be permitted to attend.

UEFA will use the game to study the impact of spectators as part of their Return to Play protocol: includes medical and operational obligations for all parties taking part in and/or organising UEFA matches. These obligations must be applied by match organisers when preparing venues, subject to any additional measures imposed by local authorities from country to country.

Check out UEFA's Return to Play website here: https://www.uefa.com/returntoplay/

To learn more, download the full protocol.