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A closer look at the negotiations between the NFL and the NFLPA
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If you want to attend an NFL game in 2020, you are going to wear a mask. That’s the new mandate issued by the league as it works to finalize the COVID-19 protocols ahead of training camp, announced by the league’s main office Wednesday, as players head to social media in a hyper-vigilant effort to call attention to unresolved issues security concerns. The requirement will apply throughout the league and supersedes the lack of a local legal mandate. In other words, even if your local jurisdiction does not require you to wear a mask, the NFL will enforce your right to refuse it at the door if you attempt to enter a stadium without one.
This will inevitably take the league one step closer to reaching common ground with the NFLPA on safety amid the coronavirus pandemic, as players threaten to stay out of the season if their concerns remain unresolved.
This does not mean that all NFL teams are allowed to have fans in the stands, as evidenced by both the New York Giants and the New York Jets who announced a ban on fans at MetLife Stadium until 2021. This It happened immediately after New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy set a 500-person state limit for all major events, including NFL games. In a joint statement issued by both the Giants and the Jets, the two teams agreed with Murphy’s decision, having been in communication on the verdict before it was issued.
Several teams will allow the presence of fans, however, albeit in a greatly diminished capacity. The Atlanta Falcons, as an example, announced that they will allow 10,000 to 20,000 fans at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium this fall, noting that their decision “is in accordance with state and local requirements, as well as the NFL and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines for social distancing. “
In perspective, the Falcons may have more than 70,000 fans on any game day.
Such a reduction in capacity will help maintain social distancing measures, and the league’s requirement that fans wear masks will provide the added protection that NFL players and staff expect. It is unclear, in the end, how many teams will host fans in 2020, but what is clear is that any fan who hopes to be present to cheer on his home team will have to do so while covering his face.
