Why football with fans won't be coming for some time

[FilipinoHibs]

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/bl...pool-atletico?

[Andy74]

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https://www.theguardian.com/sport/bl...pool-atletico?

That’s looking back. We will be in a new phase before too long with a minimal amount of cases and protection focused on the vulnerable.

[snedzuk]

Prof Spector- 25th may - estimates that the percentage of the UK population currently infected is 0.3%.

[Keith_M]

Maybe it's just me but I don't see anything in that article suggesting we won't see spectators at sporting events anytime soon.

It's an article about the stupidity of hosting two events, with no precautions whatsoever, at the start of the outbreak.

That's hardly the same as having planned events with restricted numbers and strict safety precautions put in place.

[Brightside]

I’m more confident than ever that fans will be back when the new season starts.

[Ozyhibby]

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I’m more confident than ever that fans will be back when the new season starts.

So am I. With the correct measure of social dinstancing in place, everyone required to wear a mask and the fact that stadiums are outdoors then fans should be allowed back in. There will be hand sanitizers everywhere and lots of stewards to ensure social distancing during entry and exit but it can and will happen.


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[LancashireHibby]

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So am I. With the correct measure of social dinstancing in place, everyone required to wear a mask and the fact that stadiums are outdoors then fans should be allowed back in. There will be hand sanitizers everywhere and lots of stewards to ensure social distancing during entry and exit but it can and will happen.


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How would you manage social distancing in the stands? To get even 1m between people would mean a huge reduction in capacity.

[Scouse Hibee]

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How would you manage social distancing in the stands? To get even 1m between people would mean a huge reduction in capacity.

You wouldn’t it’s impossible to manage and will never happen, by the time we go back the 2m rule will probably be relaxed and replaced with enhanced hygiene and mask wearing. It will be all back or not at all.

[danhibees1875]

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You wouldn’t it’s impossible to manage and will never happen, by the time we go back the 2m rule will probably be relaxed and replaced with enhanced hygiene and mask wearing. It will be all back or not at all.

I think that's the more likely outcome.

Assuming we keep on top of this and the figures reduce in line with current trends while relaxing the lockdown then it'll hopefully just be a few token gestures (maybe doing them a disservice, but relative to what we're currently doing ) like that required for bars, restaurants, and public events to get up and running again.

It'll probably end up with a few issues each match where someone feeling otherwise fine is turned away for having a temperature, but other than that it'll be football back and pretty much as we know it.

[Keith_M]

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How would you manage social distancing in the stands? To get even 1m between people would mean a huge reduction in capacity.

Which is why some people have been suggesting using Murrayfield on a temporary basis.

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You wouldn’t it’s impossible to manage and will never happen, by the time we go back the 2m rule will probably be relaxed and replaced with enhanced hygiene and mask wearing. It will be all back or not at all.

I don't think it's impossible to manage, but it does need a lot of thought.

[Brightside]

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How would you manage social distancing in the stands? To get even 1m between people would mean a huge reduction in capacity.

I dont see many people social distancing anywhere now tbh. No one is doing it in any shop i've been in - despite the warnings. Even walking along the street. I've just seen a bunch of guys on a bowling green and they are almost touching. 2 months down the line people will be going along like normal.

[hibsbollah]

Poland has just announced the restart of their league with stadiums at 25% capacity. Seems risky to me.

[CMurdoch]

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I dont see many people social distancing anywhere now tbh. No one is doing it in any shop i've been in - despite the warnings. Even walking along the street. I've just seen a bunch of guys on a bowling green and they are almost touching. 2 months down the line people will be going along like normal.

Yeah, I reckon a lot young folk are just ignoring social distancing now.
Saw loads of them this afternoon partying in the large park area opposite Parsons Green Primary School.
Fast food packaging and beer bottles discarded etc which is a separate issue.
Don't want to spoil things for them but don't want them putting themselves and others needlessly at risk either.

[Pretty Boy]

Fans will be back in stadiums by around about mid September imo.

It will be a different experience and I'd expect controlled, staggered entry, an attempt at one way systems, hygiene stations throughout and possibly temperature checks and mandatory masks.

I'd accept all of that to have Hibs back.

[G B Young]

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Fans will be back in stadiums by around about mid September imo.

It will be a different experience and I'd expect controlled, staggered entry, an attempt at one way systems, hygiene stations throughout and possibly temperature checks and mandatory masks.

I'd accept all of that to have Hibs back.

Sounds awful. Made even more soulless by the fact mandatory masks would make singing all but impossible.

I get why some fans would go back despite all that but I don't think I would. I'd just keep donating to the club in other ways and spend my Saturday afternoons doing something less restrictive. Hearty family dog walk, take up golf again etc.

[tamig]

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Fans will be back in stadiums by around about mid September imo.

It will be a different experience and I'd expect controlled, staggered entry, an attempt at one way systems, hygiene stations throughout and possibly temperature checks and mandatory masks.

I'd accept all of that to have Hibs back.

Hibs have already been practising the staggered entry all season thanks to the new turnstile system.

[number9dream]

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Hibs have already been practising the staggered entry all season thanks to the new turnstile system.

Turnstiles will have to go. They are an absolute virus hotspot.

[bingo70]

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Turnstiles will have to go. They are an absolute virus hotspot.

Not exactly a big problem,

Will be hand held scanners by a steward at the exit doors I assume

[matty_f]

I think the next month is key to understanding how soon we'll be able to watch football again in the stands.

If the gradual easing of lockdown doesn't produce a second wave and if the number of infections continues to fall then it might happen far sooner than we think.

[GreenCastle]

Saw a picture of a theatre in Germany.

They could easily tape off seats and allow distancing or the extreme would be remove seats.

Funny thing is - it will be easier to do in stadiums with standing - seating especially at Tynie where you are packed in like sardines is a slight issue.

[The Baldmans Comb]

Cheltenham, Liverpool v Athletico Madrid and in Italy Atalanta v Valencia are all quoted as sporting events that helped spread the virus.

Am I remembering wrong but didnt Sevco v Bayer Leverkusen in front of 50,000 people not take place even later than these other events.❓.

[jgl07]

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Cheltenham, Liverpool v Athletico Madrid and in Italy Atalanta v Valencia are all quoted as sporting events that helped spread the virus.

Am I remembering wrong but didnt Sevco v Bayer Leverkusen in front of 50,000 people not take place even later than these other events.❓.

Maybe but Madrid and Milan/Bergamo were the two cities in Europe with the highest infection rate at the time. It was (and remains) far less prevalent in Germany.

[Hibeesmad]

At least half of Scottish Premiership clubs — including Aberdeen, Celtic, Hibs and Kilmarnock — are understood to have contracts in place with the same broadcast company, boosting hopes games will be streamed live on club websites if football is forced to return behind closed doors.

The Athletic*understands many Premiership clubs use Stream Digital as the technical partner for their club TV channels and there is optimism that all bar one of the remaining top-flight sides will also get on board before the 2020-21 season begins.

Only Rangers are “very unlikely” to sign up as they are already contracted to StreamAGM, a streaming provider popular in the English Championship.

Multiple clubs are scheduled to have Zoom meetings with representatives from Stream Digital this week to discuss collaboration, and another club has told*The Athletic*“they’re crossing the t’s and dotting the i’s” on their deal with the company and it should be confirmed later this week.

“Some have seemed dismissive of streaming as something that simply can’t happen or can’t work,” one Premiership club told*The Athletic, “but there’s real positivity of it happening and it seems pretty achievable with the infrastructure already in place at most clubs.”

Stream Digital, originally SportsMedia GB, was founded as a web and media development company and redesigned the Celtic, Hibs and Hearts websites over the last decade. It’s only in recent years that they have begun pushing into video streaming. The company is ostensibly functioning as the external broadcaster for each club’s internal TV channel.

Stream Digital already fulfils the role of live streaming for most Premiership clubs, which means the mechanisms for filming games will not need to change drastically. Live streaming will use fewer people than traditional broadcast media owing to the limits on the number of people allowed in the stadium as a precautionary public health measure.

Sky Sports agreed to a deal in November 2018 to show 48 live Scottish Premiership matches per season from 2020-21, but this would see a dramatic increase in the number of matches that fans would be able to watch. Options up for debate include supporters buying “virtual season tickets” to live stream every game.

The broadcasting and innovation sub-group of Scotland’s Football Restart body meet weekly. In their most recent public update a fortnight ago, streaming was cited as a crucial topic for discussion. It’s understood that the group may encourage clubs to use Stream Digital as a makeshift blanket streaming provider for the league.

A source from one Premiership club said: “Most clubs are in sync already. I think that the Football Restart sub-groups are going to be taking steps to build that. The SPFL (Scottish Professional Football League) are confident they can find a solution to this. It definitely can be done, and it’s not extortionate either.”

Stream Digital only works for grounds that have already signed up, which one club described as a “huge pain” — it means you could not broadcast away games at a team that has not yet joined. There is, therefore, a concerted effort to encourage other clubs to sign so that Stream Digital can act as a centralised streaming provider where every Premiership game could be streamed using the same platform.

The biggest obstacle, however, is cost. For smaller clubs, the cost of collaboration would not necessarily be offset by the income from supporters buying virtual season tickets.

[nonshinyfinish]

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At least half of Scottish Premiership clubs — including Aberdeen, Celtic, Hibs and Kilmarnock — are understood to have contracts in place with the same broadcast company, boosting hopes games will be streamed live on club websites if football is forced to return behind closed doors.

The Athletic*understands many Premiership clubs use Stream Digital as the technical partner for their club TV channels and there is optimism that all bar one of the remaining top-flight sides will also get on board before the 2020-21 season begins.

Only Rangers are “very unlikely” to sign up as they are already contracted to StreamAGM, a streaming provider popular in the English Championship.

Multiple clubs are scheduled to have Zoom meetings with representatives from Stream Digital this week to discuss collaboration, and another club has told*The Athletic*“they’re crossing the t’s and dotting the i’s” on their deal with the company and it should be confirmed later this week.

“Some have seemed dismissive of streaming as something that simply can’t happen or can’t work,” one Premiership club told*The Athletic, “but there’s real positivity of it happening and it seems pretty achievable with the infrastructure already in place at most clubs.”

Stream Digital, originally SportsMedia GB, was founded as a web and media development company and redesigned the Celtic, Hibs and Hearts websites over the last decade. It’s only in recent years that they have begun pushing into video streaming. The company is ostensibly functioning as the external broadcaster for each club’s internal TV channel.

Stream Digital already fulfils the role of live streaming for most Premiership clubs, which means the mechanisms for filming games will not need to change drastically. Live streaming will use fewer people than traditional broadcast media owing to the limits on the number of people allowed in the stadium as a precautionary public health measure.

Sky Sports agreed to a deal in November 2018 to show 48 live Scottish Premiership matches per season from 2020-21, but this would see a dramatic increase in the number of matches that fans would be able to watch. Options up for debate include supporters buying “virtual season tickets” to live stream every game.

The broadcasting and innovation sub-group of Scotland’s Football Restart body meet weekly. In their most recent public update a fortnight ago, streaming was cited as a crucial topic for discussion. It’s understood that the group may encourage clubs to use Stream Digital as a makeshift blanket streaming provider for the league.

A source from one Premiership club said: “Most clubs are in sync already. I think that the Football Restart sub-groups are going to be taking steps to build that. The SPFL (Scottish Professional Football League) are confident they can find a solution to this. It definitely can be done, and it’s not extortionate either.”

Stream Digital only works for grounds that have already signed up, which one club described as a “huge pain” — it means you could not broadcast away games at a team that has not yet joined. There is, therefore, a concerted effort to encourage other clubs to sign so that Stream Digital can act as a centralised streaming provider where every Premiership game could be streamed using the same platform.

The biggest obstacle, however, is cost. For smaller clubs, the cost of collaboration would not necessarily be offset by the income from supporters buying virtual season tickets.

Mentions Sky but doesn't really say anything about the biggest hurdle – will Sky agree to this? The restrictions in the current TV deal (and there's no reason to think the new one would be different) are the reason that Hibs TV is audio only in the UK.

Would a compromise be possible where Sky agree that games they are not televising can be streamed?

[huggie1875]

NO CHANCE will we be back in the stadium before 2021 it will be live games at the start first

[Del Boy]

Texas are allowing their sports teams to play in front of 25% of their stadium capacity from tomorrow, so be interesting to see how that goes.

[Forza Fred]

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Texas are allowing their sports teams to play in front of 25% of their stadium capacity from tomorrow, so be interesting to see how that goes.

Don’t think the comparison with the USA is significant...Trump has made such a pig’s earvof the handling of the crisis that he’s basically given up.

I’d also be surprised if football returned when Scotland are still reporting deaths on a daily basis.

In Oz, the Rugby League has just restarted for TV only, and Aussie Rules will on June11, also behind closed doors.

Mind you, we’ve managed to contain it in the main so the risk is somewhat reduced.

[bingo70]

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NO CHANCE will we be back in the stadium before 2021 it will be live games at the start first

There is a very real chance, even if you do put NO CHANCE in capital letters.

[supermcginn]

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NO CHANCE will we be back in the stadium before 2021 it will be live games at the start first

I think you are badly wrong. It'll be October at the latest with limited capacity.

[lord bunberry]

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NO CHANCE will we be back in the stadium before 2021 it will be live games at the start first

I don’t think you’re right with that. If shops are open and kids are at school I think fans will be allowed into stadiums. Shops and schools are both indoors and that presents a far bigger risk than outdoor activities like football. There’s a lot of water to flow under the bridge before next season is due to start, including the very real potential of an effective treatment being developed.