Roland Garros, the French Grand Slam tournament, which runs from May 30 to June 13, will have supporters in the stands. The announcement was made on May 2 by Jean-Michel Blanquer, the French sports minister, on the television channel France 3.
The central courts of Roland Garros will accommodate a maximum of 1 000 fans, while the smaller courts will be restricted to 35% of their capacity during the first ten days of the clay tournament.
As of July 9, in time for the quarter-finals, this limit will rise to 65%, which means that about 5 000 fans will be able to sit at court Phillippe Chartier and Suzanne Lenglen.
Jean-Michel Blanquer also admitted that, depending on the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic, there could still be an audience on might games at Roland-Garros, a situation which would presently violate the curfew in effect.
France: phased deconfinement starting May 19
France is one of the most visited countries in Europe, even during a pandemic. The country went through a significant increase in cases of infection in recent months, but the situation is now getting better. A four-step deconfinement plan has already been established: if the health situation does not worsen, reopening will occur in stages between May 19 and June 30.
The Parisian tennis Grand Slam was initially scheduled for May 23 to June 6 but was postponed for a week due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This adjustment will allow for more fans to attend the tournament if the health and safety restrictions are eased in the meantime.
Last year, the prominent French tournament was also postponed due to the pandemic. In 2020, the Spaniard Rafael Nadal defeated Serbian Novak Djokovic and managed to win his 13th Roland Garros title.
This year, coming soon, the performances of athletes such as Medvedev, Federer, Nadal or Djokovic will once again delight the fans of the sport.
Portugal: no live audience in football matches, except for "test events"
Following a Cabinet meeting on May 13, Mariana Vieira da Silva, the Portuguese Minister of State and the Presidency, announced that the last round of the I League will have fans in the stands at a maximum of 10% capacity as a "test event". This same type of test or pilot events have also been carried out in the cultural sector.
According to the Minister, these events with a limited number of participants are to make way for a new phase with fewer restrictions, starting in September, when a large portion of the population is due to be vaccinated. However, the official didn't elaborate on the set of rules to be observed at that time.
Portugal is, at the present, one of the European countries with a most favourable situation. Most other countries continue to keep fans away from sports venues.
In England - a country with one of the highest vaccination rates at the moment - the public will return to the stadiums, with many restrictions, on May 17, at 25% of venue capacity. The controversy right now has to do with the number of supporters of the away team that will be allowed to attend the matches: many point to about 5% of the total venue capacity.
Let's get back to our favourite sports!
Despite the limitations around fans presence at sports venues, the situation in Portugal has evolved in a way that allows for athletes to train and compete once again without limitations.
That's why we at Move Sports are already preparing our autumn tournaments. It is time for you to register your team for the 2021 editions of the Portugal Rugby Youth Festival and the Lisbon Football Youth Cup!
Join us in Lisbon for one of our international tournaments and let's once again enjoy our favourite sports, together!
