Even if professional sports get back in action this fall, expect things to look much different than in years past.
Dr Jeff Pothof with UW Health says steps can be taken to increase hygiene among players and fans, keep fans separated, and to ensure some sort of safety for the public.
“I don’t think it’ll be exactly like it was last year but the same time I’m hopeful we can find something because I think that all of us could really use some sports or something like that to occupy us at this point.”
That will include measures like keeping fans separate in concourses and the stands, limiting the contact between people at concession stands, and increased sanitation.
Pothoff says it’s going to be much harder to take those steps at the local level, and high school sports are going to have to take a measure of what is safe and what is not for their students and fans.
“That’s going to be really difficult to do at that level, to know that these players that are going to come into close contact clearly are a high transmission risk. How can you ensure that they aren’t positive for the virus right now? It will be more challenging as you move your way down the sports ranks.”
He says that schools and organizations are going to have to take a very close look at how to protect the safety of student athletes and fans.