Today’s match (3) between Arsenal and Rapid Vienna, Austria, was the first big match in England to host fans during the coronavirus pandemic. The Europa League match takes place one day after the end of the period full lock In the UK they have a strict procedure protocol covering a maximum of 2,000 people. He crushed the English team 4-1.
In addition to the limited audience, there is a need to use a mask or other cloth to cover the nose and mouth. Anyone who breaks the rule can be removed from the field and even fined if they insist on not complying with the obligation.
In the stands, hugs and greetings are not officially prohibited, but fans are encouraged to avoid them as much as possible. The same goes for the chants and cries of support that, even when wearing a mask, increases the spread of saliva particles – which can contain the coronavirus.
As of today, the audience size for each match in England depends on what stage the stadium district finds itself in this pandemic. The capital, London, where the Arsenal stadium is located, is currently in the second stage. In the stadiums of the third stage, matches continue without an audience. Phase 1 zones are free to have up to 4,000 fans at matches – which is not the case for any Premier League club.
This weekend, for example, matches played by Chelsea, Tottenham and Liverpool can receive up to 2,000 fans. Manchester City, for example, will face Fulham behind closed doors because the city area is in the third stage. The same applies to United in the upcoming rounds, if conditions do not change.
Yesterday (2) the United Kingdom ended a four-week lockdown period, a measure that was in response to the recent surge in COVID-19 cases in the country. That’s why the fans began returning to the stadiums today.
According to official data, the second wave of the epidemic hit a much larger number than the first: the day when the most daily cases of the disease were recorded was recorded in March (7800 diagnoses), a record that was surpassed at the end of September. During the month of November, the UK recorded 30,000 new cases of COVID-19 in a single day. In total, the number of people infected with the virus in the country has reached more than 1.6 million and 60,000 people have died from the disease.
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