Stadiums NEED Supporters
Re-opening Risk Assessed
The Hungarian top flight were the first in Europe to allow fans back into stadia during the pandemic and they have attempted to maintain social distancing by running at a 20% capacity, however it looks highly unlikely that we will see fans allowed back into stadia in the UK until at least a proven vaccine for Covid-19 is available. Even after that there may be various logistical issues with rolling out a vaccine, which could leave uncertainty and concern adversely affecting large crowds at any sporting events.
For football clubs survival in the lower leagues can be dependent on the revenues that their stadium provides. Only for the highest echelons whereby huge TV and commercial revenues can largely outweigh match-day revenue can they escape the realities that sport needs fans and without it the threat of survival is thrust upon them very quickly.
However, for many clubs in the top flight the loss of TV revenue, that they have become reliant upon for forecasting spending, can be equally problematic and this is one of many reasons why the Premier League will be returning to our television sets within a few weeks as the league resumes behind closed doors.
It is calculated that around 300 people need to be present for a top flight football match to take place. Both sets of squads, managers, coaching staff, backroom staff, club medics, officials, paramedics, grounds staff, maintenance workers and then of course the necessary televisions crews for broadcasting, which in turn requires riggers, electricians, technicians, producers, sound engineers, then there’s the individual clubs’ own media teams… the list goes on. It’s no mean feat to ensure a live game goes ahead and with that comes a very specific duty of care from stadium operators and the clubs themselves.
For many clubs it’s essential we try to return to some sort of normality as soon as possible to survive and therefore ensuring compliance and safety is paramount on the journey in attempting to achieve this. Some guidelines have been put in place and the wheels have been set in motion but with the good news that UK rate of infections are currently falling, we still remain cautious of what the future may hold.
The advice from the Government makes it clear that it is for the individual sports bodies and facilities to develop their own specific guidance on reopening stadia. This should enable the individual sport and governing body to create and develop an approach that best fits its own unique situation.
Any venue hosting a sports event and all associated sports facilities will need to undertake a specific Covid-19 risk assessment before any re-opening and recommencing of the activity, not just covering the participants, but all personnel necessary to enable the sport to take place including coaches, officials, medical teams, ground staff, and eventually spectators. Initial guidance on conducting risk assessments at sports events was produced by the World Health Organisation on April 14th, 2020 and included a useful interactive risk assessment tool.
As sport emerges tentatively from the lockdown restrictions, the governing bodies, venue operators and the clubs themselves will need to keep a range of legal issues at the forefronts of their minds. They have a duty to ensure the safety of sports participants, which requires athletes’ safety to be paramount when designing not only the playing rules, but the associated safety regulations and protocols. A similar duty would be imposed on the event organisers. By analogy, such a duty could be extended to cover anyone required to be at the game, including, eventually spectators.
As the Government expects sports to develop safety protocols in line with government advice, there is an expectation that the individual governing bodies of the sport (SGB’s) will act as the experts for their full suite of disciplines. As Covid-19 is now a known risk, it is one that must be addressed by SGB’s in the playing and safety protocols. Risk assessments for all categories of personnel engaging in a sporting activity must be carried out to ensure that everyone at an activity or event can be considered reasonably safe. Event organisers should be aware that in the future, failing to address the known risks of transmission has the potential to be considered negligent.
For the stadium managers/operators and the clubs themselves two distinct areas of the law may come into play when reinstating sporting activities. First, there is the possibility of criminal liability under the Health and Safety at Work Act of 1974, which ensures the responsibility to protect workers and others from risk to their health and safety whilst working within or immediately around their venue. A failure to do so that causes a risk of harm being caused to employees is sufficient to trigger an offence under the Act and in extreme cases can be considered as corporate manslaughter, if insufficient protective measures are put in place.
The stadium operator’s/management’s liability also encompasses the duties to provide: competent staff; adequate materials and equipment; a proper system of working, including effective supervision; and a safe place of work. This would therefore require a risk assessment relating specifically to the potential transmission of Covid-19 to be conducted and to implement its findings before requiring employees to return to work. Any return to work protocols would have to address new requirements imposed on employees for the safety of themselves and their colleagues; ensuring that equipment was cleaned regularly; and ensuring that, as far as is reasonably possible, the working environment was safe for the specific job being undertaken.
There have been various reports in the media that in the days leading up to the lockdown in the UK, a significant number of people contracted Covid-19 whilst attending both the Cheltenham Festival and also concerns raised around the impact of just over 3,000 Atletico Madrid fans attending a Champions League game against Liverpool at Anfield when Spain was already struggling to combat the outbreak of the virus. At present, it is not possible to determine whether or not these events have acted as a means of spreading the virus, however, the concerns they have raised should serve as a warning that very specific risk assessments need to be carried out before allowing capacity crowds back to sporting events.
