In March 2020, fans exited the stadiums for their respective teams without the knowledge that going to another sporting contest would be a pandemic away. However, some sports leagues have been able to assimilate fans, albeit at a reduced rate from the typical professional sports setting.
The National Football League was the first professional sports league to allow fans to attend games, and this was only in the case of certain teams. For the Kansas City Chiefs and the Jacksonville Jaguars, fans were let in from Week One, and so far those franchises have received little to no backlash. However, the large scale of outbreaks within the NFL provide concerns for attendees, as if the players who are given the top-tier care are still contracting Covid-19, where does that leave the fans?
As other teams begin to allow some fans in, it brings up potential controversy, One of the first steps of teams has been to allow fans personal to the team to attend. In some cases, this meant families of the players, in other instances it was seemingly random. This brings controversy to the forefront, and perhaps there is no better example than Hall of Fame Quarterback Brett Farve’s appearance at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers home contest Sept. 21st. The controversy was that Farve attended the contest while family of the players, namely Buccaneers Center Ryan Jensen, were not given access to the stadium.
Farve attended the game as an employee for NFL Films, and the organization was doing a feature on Buccaneers safety Devin White. While this is the legal reasoning for Farve’s attendance, it does not explain his conduct. His outfit and behavior associate him with the likeness of a fan, and not an employee. If this behavior was present at a Green Bay Packers game, the team Farve to the NFL, Major League Baseball is also tackling the issue.
The MLB, who dealt with COVID-19 issues themselves, went without fans throughout the season and most of the playoffs. However, the National League Championship series, which is currently being contested by the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves, allowed limited fans into games and the World Series will also be held with fans. It is important to note that both of these series are bring played in Arlington, Texas, and the American League Championship Series that was held in San Diego did not have fans present.
According to a Sports Illustrated article by Nick Selbe, the tickets were sold in pods of four that would be separated from other groups. So far this has seemed to work, as detailed in a New York Times article by David Waldstein. While the numbers in Texas are still high, they do not seem to be drastically increasing as a result of these fans and if these limited amounts of fans can stay safe and healthy, that presents hope for the assimilation of fans into sporting events in the near future.