COVID-19 & Sports

[WalnutBaron]

Two touchpoints that surfaced today:

1. Chris "Mad Dog" Russo speculated during his monologue at the beginning of his show today that "we may have to skip baseball this year, and I'm starting to feel like Wimbledon and the U.S. Open Tennis Championships won't happen, either".
2. Kirk Herbstreit of ESPN says he "would be shocked if we play college football this year".

We are beginning to get a taste of the long siege we are facing. Until there's a vaccine, social gathering of any sort--especially in stadiums and arenas--will be both ill-advised and even dangerous.

 

[Brett]

Two touchpoints that surfaced today:

1. Chris "Mad Dog" Russo speculated during his monologue at the beginning of his show today that "we may have to skip baseball this year, and I'm starting to feel like Wimbledon and the U.S. Open Tennis Championships won't happen, either".
2. Kirk Herbstreit of ESPN says he "would be shocked if we play college football this year".

We are beginning to get a taste of the long siege we are facing. Until there's a vaccine, social gathering of any sort--especially in stadiums and arenas--will be both ill-advised and even dangerous.

I still think with some sports the players could play in an empty stadium / court
It's just so maddening ....

 

[TravelTime]

I still think with some sports the players could play in an empty stadium / court
It's just so maddening ....

I think the problem with group sports like football is the players could pass it along to each other. Maybe sports like tennis could continue since they are more than 6’ away. No audiences of course.

 

[Luanne]

I still think with some sports the players could play in an empty stadium / court
It's just so maddening ....

Which sports? Tennis I could see, but the team sports.....nope.

 

[Brett]

Which sports? Tennis I could see, but the team sports.....nope.

yes, team sports require less than 6' distance
Maybe with the new 15 minute FDA authorized COVID 19 test each participant gets tested before they play
.
just trying to see some potential solutions

 

[Luanne]

yes, team sports require less than 6' distance
Maybe with the new 15 minute FDA authorized COVID 19 test each participant gets tested before they play
.
just trying to see some solutions

I'm still trying to think of what team sports could maintain that distance. Not trying to be difficult.

Just thought of another one...golf.

 

[TravelTime]

yes, team sports require less than 6' distance
Maybe with the new 15 minute FDA authorized COVID 19 test each participant gets tested before they play
.
just trying to see some solutions

Maybe that would work.

 

[Brett]

I'm still trying to think of what team sports could maintain that distance. Not trying to be difficult.

if the players got the new 15 minute FDA authorized COVID 19 test immediately before the game the distance between players may not be a factor
.
... lack of live TV sports is driving me crazy

 

[Chrispee]

We just need everybody to shoot like Ben Simmons for the NBA to start up again.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

["Roger"]

I've had my doubts about the NFL season. A player tests positive. You really should have the rest of the team self quarantine for fourteen days. What does that do to the schedule?

 

[bbodb1]

A year with no sports might just allow us to remember the proper place sports should have in this thing we call society.

We can survive a year without sports...

 

[davidvel]

A year with no sports might just allow us to remember the proper place spprts should have in this thing we call society.

We can survive a year without sports...

And we could survive without TUG, but who wants to?

 

[pedro47]

Tuggers are in compliance with social distancing ;we are more than six feet apart. LOL.

It is nice reading this website daily. Tuggers are located in the United States in the North, South, East, West, the Carribean and all over the world.

 

[WalnutBaron]

The Wall Street Journal reports today that, quite rightly, the major sports leagues are very concerned about how COVID-19 will change the behavior of the fans, particularly as it relates to shoehorning themselves into packed stadiums around the country to see football, baseball, basketball, or other sports. Here are some highlighted comments from the article (which is behind a paywall):

• Bill Gates--who warned of the devastating impact of a pandemic five years ago--says that mass gatherings are a thing of the past, at least until a vaccine is widely available.
• Joe Lacob, Owner of the Golden State Warriors, said this: "The overall biggest long-term problem for sports is the fear associated with public interaction. When does that go away? When will society decide that it is once again safe to interact in public? That is the big question for sports teams and leagues.”
• The NBA is considering completing their season with playoffs held in a fan-free "bubble". But they're not sure the virus would be defeated in time for them to play next season. "Even if they manage to finish this season, they could find themselves in the same position next season. They could also find themselves running into ferocious competition for eyeballs with the NFL and college football—if those seasons begin on time. California Gov. Gavin Newsom said on Saturday that he doesn’t believe his state’s three NFL teams will be playing in front of fans come September."
• A soccer match held in Italy in mid-February is now being blamed for being a huge contributor to the spread of the virus in the Lombardy region of that country. "Imagining a return to packed stadiums is even harder when the stern lessons of recent mass gatherings are only beginning to be understood. It isn’t just because fans will have less disposable income to spend on sports tickets. It’s also become clear that the outbreak of coronavirus in Northern Italy was turbocharged by a soccer game between Atalanta and Valencia in Milan on Feb. 19. Fans who attended other matches are now wondering if they are sitting on their own time-bombs."

How this all affects the basic economic model of professional sports in America is yet to be seen. But one thing is for sure: whenever we're brave enough to venture back to a sports stadium or arena, things will be different, perhaps significantly so.

 

[SteelerGal]

I haven’t gone to a professional game in 5yrs. Too costly. However would it make sense to not pack the stadiums until a vaccine is available?

 

[LannyPC]

We can survive a year without sports...

Yes we could as fans. My concern though is those whose livelihoods depend on these sports. Well, that actually takes a back seat to the health crisis.

 

[Brett]

Major league baseball might play without fans -

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/...g-training-ballparks-without-fans-per-report/