It has been nine months since football players last saw fans cheering for them in the stands. In England, that nine months long wait finally came to an end as the spectators made their way back to the stands, cheering the players on.
As reported earlier, the tier system is being followed quite strictly in England, with no stadium allowed to hold more than 50% of its capacity.
West Ham United were the first to have fans back in the stands for their fixture against Manchester United. Despite a loss to the visitors, the game was reminiscent of a true football match and not the haunting screams of players across the pitch.
Elsewhere in London, about 2000 fans made their way to Stamford Bridge to support Chelsea against Leeds United. While there is reason to be happy, there is also a cause for concern.
The fans have been spotted sitting too closely in stadia and in Reading’s Madejski Stadium, they were asked to keep a seat between each other while watching the game after only twelve minutes past kick-off.
Temperature checks are being conducted for each and every person who enters the stadium. Moreover, keeping face masks on throughout the game has been made compulsory for everybody.
Arsenal, Brighton, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Everton, Fulham, Liverpool, Southampton, Tottenham and West Ham are the clubs that have been allowed to have spectators in the stands.
4000 fans are being allowed in the tier one stadia. However, Cornwall, the Isle of Wight and the Isles of Scilly are in the lowest tier and are not allowed to have any people in the stands yet.
There are also provisions in place to increase the holding capacity of stadia to about 10,000 people in the future. However, that will be on the cards as long as the coronavirus cases are on the downside.
