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A continued surge in positive coronavirus cases has forced the New Orleans Saints to backtrack on their attendance limits for home games at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, with the head of the New Orleans Health Department, Dr. Jennifer Avegno, recommending that the venue be limited to 4% of its total capacity — totaling no more than 3,000 fans. The neighboring New Orleans Pelicans are being held to the same standard, with an audience of just 750 expected for their Dec. 27 home opener at the Smoothie King Center.
It’s a step back from the Saints’ last home game, which hosted 6,000 spectators for Nov. 22’s matchup with the Atlanta Falcons. The team was working with a phased plan expanding attendance figures up to 15,000 for upcoming kickoffs on Dec. 20 (against the Kansas City Chiefs) and Dec. 25 (versus the Minnesota Vikings), but at this point they’ll be scaling back as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to expand nationally.
The Saints are hopeful that they will be allowed to welcome larger numbers into the Superdome for January’s playoffs, but that remains to be seen. It’s just another sacrifice we’ll have to make so long as the positive test rate remains too high.
Other NFL teams are giving up significantly more. The San Francisco 49ers had to move operations to Arizona just to continue working, practicing, and playing games as local officials in the Bay Area take greater action against the spread of infections. While vaccinations are on the horizon, it doesn’t appear that the 2020 season will resume normalcy before the pandemic can be better controlled.
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