NBA, NHL Spar With Officials Over Whether to Bar Spectators
“We are committed to the health and safety of our players, staff and fans,” the team said.
(Bloomberg) -- NBA and NHL teams have defied pleas from government officials and health experts to bar spectators from games in response to coronavirus, but the leagues are still figuring out their next steps, including possibly moving matches to other locations.
The Golden State Warriors went ahead with their game against the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday night in San Francisco, despite a city health officer recommending that large nonessential gatherings be canceled.
But Warriors coach Steve Kerr said the idea of playing behind closed doors was an option under consideration and joked that he’d experienced fan-free events as a player.
“It’s absolutely a possibility,” Kerr said on Tuesday. “I’ve played on a couple of teams where it felt like that was the case at times.”
San Francisco adopted a harder line on Wednesday, saying it would issue a public health order prohibiting events with 1,000 or more people. Mayor London Breed said in a statement that she spoke with the Warriors and that they were “in support of our efforts.”
It’s a conundrum facing sports leagues from the U.S. to Asia and Europe, and teams are increasingly playing without spectators. Major League Baseball, which begins its regular season later this month, is also pondering its options. In additional to potentially playing in empty stadiums, teams in cities experiencing outbreaks may move matches to opponents’ venues or neutral sites.
Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, suggested to a House committee Wednesday that the NBA shouldn’t be playing games with fans.
“We would recommend that there not be large crowds,” he said. “If that means not having any people in the audience when the NBA plays, so be it.”
In Ohio on Tuesday, Governor Mike DeWine asked that indoor sporting events in the state restrict crowds -- with just athletes, parents, media and required personnel attending -- to protect against coronavirus. That included pro sports. But a few hours later, the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets, which play in Ohio’s capital, said they planned to host two games this week as scheduled, with ticketed fans welcome to attend.
Fans cheered the move on social media.
The team said it has been in contact with the National Hockey League, which is talking with groups like the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Canada’s public health agency.
“We are committed to the health and safety of our players, staff and fans,” the team said. “To that end, guests should adhere to recommendations that suggest persons at higher risk, including elderly individuals and those with currently compromised health issues or who are feeling ill, avoid large-scale public events.”
The Blue Jackets aren’t alone. The NBA’s Cavaliers, who play in Cleveland, said in a joint statement with Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse arena that fans would remain welcome at events. That includes a game played by the Cleveland Monsters hockey team, an affiliate of the Blue Jackets, scheduled for Sunday. The Cavaliers, meanwhile, are currently on the road until March 24.
“We will continue to evaluate, make decisions and provide appropriate updates concerning any potential changes to the ongoing event and game schedule as needed,” the Cavaliers said in the joint statement.
In San Francisco, where the Warriors play, the city previously blocked all “nonessential” public gatherings at city-owned facilities. But the team’s arena is privately owned. The latest order seeks to close that loophole.
California Governor Gavin Newsom chided pro sports for not taking coronavirus seriously enough. The leagues have barred media from locker rooms, but they haven’t addressed the threat to fans, he said.
“I’ve found it quite curious that the four major organizations -- NHL, soccer, Major League Baseball and the NBA -- put out guidelines to protect their players but not their fans,” he said at a press conference Tuesday.
The NBA plans to hold a conference call with owners on Wednesday to discuss the issue.
Sporting events around the country are being disrupted by the virus. The Ivy League announced Tuesday that it was canceling its postseason basketball tournaments scheduled to be held outside Boston, while the ACC said its tournament in North Carolina would go on as planned.
The sports world is eagerly awaiting a decision from the NCAA, which has said it is exploring its options for March Madness. The three-week basketball tournament is scheduled to open with four games, coincidentally enough, in Ohio.
--With assistance from David R. Baker.
To contact the reporters on this story: Eben Novy-Williams in New York at enovywilliam@bloomberg.net;Scott Soshnick in New York at ssoshnick@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nick Turner at nturner7@bloomberg.net, Rob Golum
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