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Fans will return next week to the Emirates, London Stadium and Twickenham in limited numbers, but many terrains, including half of all Premier League clubs, will remain closed.
New government coronavirus restrictions left 51 of the 104 Premier League, EFL and Women’s Super League clubs capable of hosting a maximum of 2,000 fans. All Premier League teams in the south plus those in Liverpool can welcome fans back. Leeds coach Marcelo Bielsa claimed that clubs that could not do so were being “penalized”.
Arsenal’s Europa League tie against Rapid Vienna next Thursday will be the first competitive match by a Premier League team to have fans present since March. The club announced that tickets will be available “on a first-come, first-served basis” for gold and platinum members only, saying: “We cannot wait to welcome our fans back home in what will be a historic moment for the club. “. “
West Ham v Manchester United on Saturday 5 December will be the first Premier League match to receive supporters, although Manchester United will not be able to receive fans as they are among the clubs under level 3 restrictions that prohibit attendance at elite sporting events. .
Bielsa was not impressed by the news, suggesting that Leeds and many other clubs were being treated unfairly.
“It shouldn’t be about the category, or the consequences of being in a category, it should be about trying to keep the competition as equal as possible with things that are controllable,” Bielsa said. “The presence of fans influences the results.
“What the organization says is that people who are from places where there is a greater risk of infection, it means that they will be penalized.”
In rugby union, 400 of the 2,000 tickets to England’s Fall Nations Cup final match on Dec. 6 will be given to NHS workers, the RFU confirmed, after Twickenham was cleared to allow crowds. Seven Premiership clubs will also be able to admit fans, with Worcester being the first to do so against Bath on December 5.
In horse racing it is expected that several important meetings before the end of the year will admit bettors. Sandown, Cheltenham and Kempton, who have big games next month, are in Level 2 areas, as is Ascot, which has a major race day on Saturday just before Christmas.
Different sports clubs will discuss details with their local safety advisory groups to ensure events are safe from Covid, with the government confirming that it would be up to individual sports to decide on certain aspects of their policies, including the use of masks. .
The EFL, which will not move matches next week to allow for fan attendance, wants fans to be able to do without masks in outdoor areas. It is configured to commit a policy in the next 48 hours. The Racecourse Association has asked that fans who attend meetings wear a mask “at all times” except when eating or drinking.
