NFL is planning to have full stadiums when 2020 season begins
There’s a lot of uncertainty surrounding the 2020 NFL season, but the league is planning to host games as normal. The NFL is currently operating as if stadiums will be packed with fans once the 2020 season gets underway, according to NBC Sports Washington.
NFL EVP of Football Operations Troy Vincent made those comments while appearing on The Team 980 in Washington, D.C. on Friday. Vincent said the league is planning for stadiums to be at full capacity, but admits that could change.
Here’s what Vincent said, via NBC Sports Washington:
“We are planning to have full stadiums until the medical community tells us otherwise," NFL EVP of Football Operations Troy Vincent said on "The Brian Mitchell Show" on The Team 980 on Friday. "Now remember when we're talking -- we're talking about September, August, September. So there's a lot that can happen here. So we're planning for full stadiums.”
While the NFL currently expects full stadiums, Vincent makes it clear they won’t force the issue. If the medical community determines it’s not safe to have a large group of people gathered together in a stadium amid the coronavirus pandemic, the league will listen. Vincent admits the league already has separate plans in case stadiums can only be half full.
It’s unclear whether fans will be allowed to attend NFL games at all. A number of states have discouraged mass gatherings. Many of those recommendations involve groups much, much smaller than you would expect at a football game. It’s possible things change by the time the season kicks off, but it’s impossible to know whether that will be the case.
At least one NFL team is being cautious regarding ticket sales. The Pittsburgh Steelers are making 50 percent of their tickets available to fans just in case social distancing restrictions remain in place in August.
Being cautious isn’t the worst idea right now. While the NFL expects full stadiums in 2020, the league is wise to have contingency plans in place in case it doesn’t happen.
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