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FOOTBALL

Bundesliga: How Germany plans for football fans to return to the stadium in September

Football clubs in Germany's top two divisions on Tuesday agreed to plans drawn up by the league which could allow the partial return of fans to stadiums from mid-September, despite the coronavirus pandemic.

Published: 4 August 2020 15:33 CEST
Bundesliga: How Germany plans for football fans to return to the stadium in September
A football match in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-Westphalia on June 16th with the sign "Football without fans is nothing!" Photo: DPA

Under the agreed plans drawn up by the German Football League (DFL) for the new season, which starts on September 18th, fans would only be allowed to sit, alcohol at matches would be banned until October and there will be no away fans until the end of the year.

Fans would only be allowed to sit, tickets would be personalised so spectators could be traced, alcohol at matches would be banned until October and there will be no away fans until the end of the year.

The plan is however subject to approval by German authorities, with health ministers of the country's 16 states to meet on Monday over the issue.

Germany has recorded 211,281 cases and 9,156 deaths due to the coronavirus, and in April began easing curbs imposed to halt transmission.

READ ALSO: German Bundesliga issues guidelines for fans' return to stadium

But fears are growing over a second wave as daily number of new infections was steadily climbing again, in recent weeks hitting levels not seen since May.

“The priority in Germany at the moment is not full stadiums, but people's health,” said Christian Seifert, chief executive of the Bundesliga after a virtual meeting of the clubs.

“When and how many spectators are allowed to return to the stadiums is not a decision for the DFL to make.”

The league's plans for fans to return has been the subject of debate among politicians and virologists in Germany.

Several fan groups have also criticised the plans, fearing long-term restrictions of their rights.

However, the league insists any changes would only be temporary while the pandemic continues to be a factor.

Seifert says the rate of infection must be taken into account and “should by no means be underestimated”.

“Professional football can only return to normality in stages,” he added.

“We will have to regain normality in small steps. We cannot go from zero to 100.”

After a two-month hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the final nine rounds of last season's Bundesliga matches were completed behind closed doors in late June.

Amid tight hygiene measures, Germany was the first country to restart its league season which paved the way for other top European leagues to follow suit.

However, Bundesliga clubs lose millions of euros in match day revenue for each game played in front of empty stands and are eager to welcome fans back.

For example, Borussia Dortmund, who finished second to champions Bayern Munich last season, are planning to have up to 15,000 fans for home games next season.

On a typical match day in Dortmund, over 81,000 spectators would fill Signal Iduna Park.

However, Seifert said even a figure of 10,000 at matches would be hard to justify with large events banned in Germany until October 31st.

“Nobody at the DFL will require a specific number of fans,” he said.

READ ALSO: Major events banned in Germany 'until at least end of October'

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HEALTH

Could there be a new wave of Covid-19 in Germany this autumn?

It’s back again: amid sinking temperatures, the incidence of Covid-19 has been slowly rising in Germany. But is this enough to merit worrying about the virus?

Published: 20 September 2023 12:05 CEST
Updated: 20 September 2023 22:22 CEST
Could there be a new wave of Covid-19 in Germany this autumn?

More people donning face masks in supermarkets, friends cancelling plans last minute due to getting sick with Covid-19. We might have seen some of those familiar reminders recently that the coronavirus is still around, but could there really be a resurgence of the virus like we experienced during the pandemic years?

According to virologists, the answer seems to be ‘maybe’: since July, the number of people newly infected with Covid-19 has been slowly rising from a very low level.

According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), nine people per 100,000 inhabitants became newly infected in Germany last week. A year ago, there were only around 270 reported cases.

Various Corona variants are currently on the loose in the country. According to the RKI,  the EG.5 (also called Eris) and XBB.1.16 lines were each detected in the week ending September 3rd with a share of just under 23 percent. 

The highly mutated variant BA.2.86 (Pirola), which is currently under observation by the World Health Organisation (WHO), also arrived in the country this week, according to RKI. 

High number of unreported case

The RKI epidemiologists also warned about a high number of unreported cases since hardly any testing is done. They pointed out that almost half of all registered sewage treatment plants report an increasing viral load in wastewater tests.

The number of hospital admissions has also increased slightly, but are still a far cry from the occupation rate amid the pandemic. Last week it was two per 100,000 inhabitants. In the intensive care units, only 1.2 percent of all beds are occupied by Covid-19 patients.

Still, a good three-quarters (76.4 percent) of people in Germany have been vaccinated at least twice and thus have basic immunity, reported RKI. 

Since Monday, doctors’ offices have been vaccinating with the adapted vaccine from Biontech/Pfizer, available to anyone over 12 years old, with a vaccine for small children set to be released the following week and one for those between 5 and 11 to come out October 2nd.

But Health Minister Karl Lauterbach has so far only recommended that people over 60 and those with pre-existing conditions get vaccinated.

READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: Who should get a Covid jab this autumn in Germany?

“The pandemic is over, the virus remains,” he said. “We cannot predict the course of coming waves of corona, but it is clear that older people and people with pre-existing conditions remain at higher risk of becoming severely ill from Covid-19”

The RKI also recommended that people with a cold voluntarily wear a mask. Anyone exhibiting cough, cold, sore throat or other symptoms of a respiratory illness should voluntarily stay at home for three to five days and take regular corona self-tests. 

However, further measures such as contact restrictions are not necessary, he said.

One of many diseases

As of this autumn, Covid-19 could be one of many respiratory diseases. As with influenza, there are no longer absolute infection figures for coronavirus.

Saarbrücken pharmacist Thorsten Lehr told German broadcaster ZDF that self-protection through vaccinations, wearing a mask and getting tested when symptoms appear are prerequisites for surviving the Covid autumn well. 

Only a new, more aggressive mutation could completely turn the game around, he added.

On April 7th of this year, Germany removed the last of its over two-year long coronavirus restrictions, including mask-wearing in some public places.

READ ALSO: German doctors recommend Covid-19 self-tests amid new variant

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