UK government has no timeframe for fans return

The government in the United Kingdom has not outlined a timeframe for when it expects spectators to be allowed back inside sports venues in the country.

The sports minister, Nigel Huddleston, addressing the issue at a parliamentary debate, said he was in support of fans returning “as soon as it is safe to do so.”

He, however, did not shed any light on a precise roadmap for this to happen despite requests from Members of Parliament.

To date, about 200, 000people have signed petitions calling for fans to be allowed back into the grounds.

Almost all elite sports have resumed in England behind closed doors since March.

“One of the challenges we’ve got is… everyone saying ‘can I get back to my stadia?'” said the sports minister.

“You times that by multiple levels, multiple leagues and sports, and all of a sudden we’ve got a whole scale which is far beyond what we believe is acceptable at this moment in time.

“But the point made by several members today, that a ‘one size fits all’ [approach] may not be appropriate, is something we’re looking at.

“A key issue is that this is not just about fans sitting in stands inside the stadia… but we must consider the whole fan journey as well, from home to venue, considering how fans travel to and from stadia, and the risk of gatherings in and out these venues, and a high number of contact points that this risks.

“We do keep a very close eye on what is happening in other countries.”

Plans were underway for a partial and staged return for fans from 1 October 2020 , but had to be called off after an increase in the number of coronavirus cases.

Concurrently though, London’s 02 Arena has got the go-ahead to host 4,700 people in an upcoming concert in December.

Also, the Royal Albert Hall will welcome back audiences of up to 2,500 for a series of concerts over the Christmas period.

McGovern said: “I worry that (sports) have been left hanging a bit.

“The position that football has been put in compared to other large events is hard to understand.

“We were on a journey and the process needs to be completed. So can he say when he anticipates that happening?”

Huddleston replied: “We want to get pilots back and fans back into stadia as soon as possible.

“We’ve had a plan from very early on in lockdown. And it’s been stated and it’s out there, and what we’ve had to do on a couple of occasions unfortunately is press the pause button. But we want to get back to the plan as soon as we can.”