COVID-19: UK Suspends Planned Return Of Fans To EPL Matches Venues

The government of the United Kingdom on Tuesday announced that it had put on hold plans for controlled return of fans to stadiums to watch the English Premier League (EPL) and other live sports events in the country.

The UK’s cabinet office minister, Michael Gove, made the announcement on while giving an update on the issue.

Plans had been made for the restricted return of 1,000 fans to attend EPL matches from October 1, but they were placed under review.

“We were looking at a staged programme of more people returning – it wasn’t going to be the case that we were going to have stadiums thronged with fans,” Gove said.

“We’re looking at how we can, for the moment, pause that programme, but what we do want to do is to make sure that, as and when circumstances allow, get more people back.

“The virus is less likely to spread outdoors than indoors but again it’s in the nature of major sporting events that there’s a lot of mingling.”

The UK’s COVID-19 alert level has moved to 4, which means transmission will be “high or rising exponentially”.

Also Read: FG Reveals Factors That Have Aided Nigeria Fight Against COVID-19

The EPL and other events in England have been played behind closed doors since the coronavirus lockdown in March.

New measures on fans reintroduction would be set out by Boris Johnson, UK’s Prime Minister, later in the day.