There won't be an Opening Day parade, but there may be fans at the game.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said Monday that 30% capacity at outdoor pro sporting events was a “logical place to start.”
That’s good news for local sports fans that missed out on a chance to cheer in-person in 2020, and particularly for Reds and FC Cincinnati followers as neither fan base was permitted to attend games last year.
With the potential for 30% attendance, that amounts to nearly 12,700 fans for Reds games at Great American Ball Park and likely about 7,800 spectators at FC Cincinnati’s new, 26,000-capacity West End Stadium, which is set to open in May.
DeWine said that teams must submit plans that include requirements for masks and social distancing at games, and a full announcement is expected Thursday.
"The Cincinnati Reds are excited at the prospect of fans returning to Great American Ball Park this season," the club said in a statement. "Our plan adheres to the CDC and state recommendations for reduced capacity, proper social distancing protocols and mask mandates. As Governor DeWine indicated, there will be an official announcement later this week and we will have more details at that time."
DeWine spoke to the Reds last week and he will speak to minor league teams, including the Dayton Dragons, the Reds’ High-A affiliate, this week. Dayton's season will begin May 4.
The Reds submitted plans to the state of Ohio, Hamilton County and the city of Cincinnati last season, but no Major League Baseball teams played in front of fans until the National League Championship Series and the World Series in the postseason.
The Reds averaged 22,329 fans at GABP during the 2019 season.
“We are grateful the Governor is open to considering increased capacity as more Ohioans get vaccinated,” FC Cincinnati officials told The Enquirer in a Monday statement. “We look forward to seeing the Governor’s guidance later this week.”
As clubs around Major League Soccer started to re-introduce fans back into their stadiums, FC Cincinnati submitted plans to government officials for hosting spectators at the University of Cincinnati’s Nippert Stadium, which served as the club’s home venue for its first five seasons.
UC officials had the final say on FC Cincinnati being allowed to host fans per their agreement for the club to play games at Nippert. UC ultimately decided against allowing FCC to have fans in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.
Throughout the winter, the Reds planned for fans, especially after the Bengals were permitted to have 12,000 fans at Paul Brown Stadium.
The Reds will play in front of a little more than 2,000 fans during their home spring training games at Goodyear Ballpark. Fans will be required to wear masks and they will sit in pods of up to six people.
FC Cincinnati’s players commence a week-long pandemic quarantine March 1 and begin on-field preseason training March 8. Details regarding where the club will train and when it will stage exhibition matches haven’t been released.
It is possible, DeWine said, that a variant of the coronavirus could derail the plan for fans at games.
"The caution that I convey to every minor league team and to the Major League teams is we don't know about this variant," DeWine said. "We don't know what it means. We don't know what the spread is going to be.
“We're optimistic we're looking at a summer where more and more people are going to be vaccinated every day and we're mask wearing inside a ballpark. If that can occur, we think 30% is a reasonable place to start."
One of the biggest local sporting events every summer is the Western & Southern Open at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason.
It's an annual event that, according to a recent economic impact study, brings in $68 million in visitor spending, the Warren County Convention & Visitors Bureau told The Enquirer last June after it was announced that the tournament was moving to New York in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. In 2019, the W&S Open reported that more than 198,000 fans attended the event over a 10-day period.
So, the prospect of having fans back in the stands this August when the tournament returns to Cincinnati is potentially great news for the local economy.
A spokesperson for the W&S Open told The Enquirer Monday night, "We look forward to hearing Governor DeWine's announcement regarding spectators at sporting events and it gives us optimism that we will be able to welcome fans back to Mason for the Western & Southern Open in August."
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