Bundesliga crowds reduced as COVID restrictions reintroduced in Germany

German Bundesliga matches can only have an attendance of up to 50% and a maximum of 15,000 after Germany reintroduced Covid-19 restrictions on Thursday.

Outgoing chancellor Angela Merkel and her successor Olaf Scholz agreed with the leaders of Germany’s 16 states on several measures being put in place.

They include reducing fans at outdoor and indoor sports events, amid rising cases of Covid infections in the country.

Most German stadiums had been operating at near-full capacity this season following the lifting of the restrictions of early last season.

Fans must also wear masks, and in states where infection figures are high, sports events must be cancelled, the government said.

Read Also: Workers demand deadline extension as govt insists on Dec 1 for COVID-19 jab

German authorities fear a fourth wave of Covid risks overwhelming intensive care units. On Thursday, the daily figures were reported as more than 73,000 new infections and 388 deaths.

Earlier, the premier of the southern state of Bavaria had called for matches to go ahead without fans.

He also said that if necessary, Bavaria – home to defending champions Bayern Munich – would go it alone and implement the step.

The state of Saxony had already gone into partial lockdown, meaning Manchester City’s Champions League group game at RB Leipzig on 7 December will take place behind closed doors.

“A temporary limit on the number of fans in the stadium is understandable,” said Christian Seifert, chief executive of the German Football League (DFL).

“The DFL hopes that this decision by the federal government and the states leads to an improvement of the pandemic situation.”

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now