The sight of fans in the stands at any Super Bowl often brings a bit of "wish I were there" envy from those watching at home. This year, expect pangs of wistfulness, too, as the camera pans the crowd at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla.
The crowd at Sunday's big game will be limited to less than half the stadium's capacity, and tickets came with KN-95 masks. It's far from normal. Nevertheless, seeing others take in the big game in person will remind many of the shortened seasons and many empty stadiums that COVID-19 caused.
Still, that there are 25,000 fans at the Super Bowl should inspire hope for 2021 — along with questions. The Minnesota Twins home opener looms in just two months. Is it possible some fans could safely be back at Target Field?
While Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's best-known infectious disease physician, is a well-known baseball fan, answers from him and other experts about what fans should expect have been elusive or mixed.
Interested fans will discover a surprising information gap. Published research has generally focused on risks to athletes, but the ticket-buying public is looking for guidance, too. Medical experts should round up data, analyze it and share it.
A year into the pandemic, there's experience to draw on. The NFL allowed limited attendance at some games this season, with mitigation measures in place. The same was true for the World Series and some college football games. Closer to home, minor league baseball's St. Paul Saints did the same. Early reports on COVID risks for fans look encouraging, though with major caveats. Many events took place before more transmissible strains moved into wider circulation. Contact tracing resources were strained in many states. And medical experts also need to weigh the data that is available and render judgment.
Responding to an editorial writer, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said that the league worked closely with local, state and federal health officials to enable fans to attend the Super Bowl and other games safely and to ensure the events didn't spread the virus. During the regular season, 19 teams hosted 1.2 million fans at 116 games.
"The clubs and league tracked with local public health authorities COVID cases in the 5, 10 days prior to a game, gameday and the following 5, 10 days. We engaged a third-party research firm to track the data with the clubs and the local public health officials," McCarthy said. "There have been no clusters of positive cases attributed to NFL games."