[ad_1]
Scottish sport is preparing for restrictions that will likely lead to the elimination of test events with fans.
The most recent indicative date for the return of the crowds was October 5, but Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon is scheduled to delay that later on Tuesday.
Three pilot events have taken place, but other requests are likely to be archived and are already being considered.
It means that October’s Old Firm match and Scottish Euro 2020 play-off semi-final will be behind closed doors.
Next week’s Scottish Open golf was scheduled to have 650 fans on both Saturday and Sunday, but it is unclear if it will continue to do so.
The tournament, at the Renaissance Club in East Lothian, is scheduled to be the first European Tour event played in front of spectators since March.
There are also concerns about the lower league soccer season, which was due to start on October 17.
That date was chosen with a view to having fans in the stadium, which would provide the necessary income for the operation of the clubs.
It is also unclear what the new restrictions to test protocols between clubs in Scottish Championship, League One and League Two might mean.
The current rules mean those teams could face each other without regular testing, but that can be revised as well.
England’s sporting bodies have already written to the Westminster government asking for financial assistance.
British government cabinet office minister Michael Gove told BBC Breakfast on Tuesday that plans for fans to return to England from October 1 will not go through.
On Saturday, the national clinical director, Professor Jason Leitch, told Off the Ball that crowds in stadiums are “a bit more at risk” after a spike in Covid-19 cases.
Motherwell coach Stephen Robinson says continuing to play without crowds would be “a huge disappointment” and that football should be rewarded for the efforts he has put in since he returned.
“The protocols that we have adhered to are above and beyond anything else, they are above the front-line staff of the NHS,” he said.
“And soccer can give a break to the mental health aspect. In a world where things are complicated and strange, soccer can be that relief factor, that little bit of joy and happiness.”
[ad_2]
