South African sports fans are finally allowed to return to stadiums in various sporting codes following Tuesday’s address by president Cyril Ramaphosa.
In his address, Ramaphosa confirmed regulations changes to the National Disaster Act, and among others, they include gatherings.
Previously, the SA government had restricted gatherings to a maximum of 2000 people outdoor and a maximum of 1000 people indoor.
And this was an attempt by the government to try and curb the spread of Covid-19 that has ravished the world over the past two years.
Now, Ramaphosa confirmed in his address that outdoor venues can now occupy 50 percent of their capacity. This mean that the sports industry can slowly return to its normality.
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However, the criteria is that only those who have vaccinated for Covid-19 will be allowed to attend sports matches and events live at the stadiums in SA
Alternatively, a negative Covid-19 test not older than 72 hours should be produced for sports fans to gain access to the stadiums.
As part of the government’s drive to have as many people as possible vaccinate, the South African Football Association (SAFA) was the first to allow 2000 fans to watch Bafana Bafana live at the stadium.
And this was the match against Ethiopia, and soon afterwards, the PSL followed suit, also with 2000 fans allowed for the MTN8 final between Mamelodi Sundowns and Cape Town City.
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PSL chairman Dr Irvin Khoza previously said the league was in a tight corner. Because they had an obligation with their sponsors to distribute a number of tickets which were in the region of 2000.