The COVID-19 pandemic has certainly not gone away, but it cannot be denied that there is a lot of hope around the corner. Vaccinations are continuing at a rapid pace, and there is genuine hope that we could return to some form of normalcy by the second half of the year.
The United States, which has been one of the worst-hit countries in the world by the pandemic, has seen many states begin to open up as well over the last few weeks, and several popular activities are also being brought back cautiously. One of these is the return of live sports, outside of strict bubble environments, in a move that could be huge for sports fans and sports betting sites.
The state of Florida is leading the charge in this aspect, with the UFC, which is the most popular MMA franchise, recently announcing that it would return to the state with UFC 261, scheduled to be held on April 24th in Jacksonville.
Importantly, this event will have 100% capacity for fans to attend, which will be a significant milestone in the United States, as all other sporting events so far have been conducted in strict bio-secure bubbles. The VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena is set to host the event, and 15,000 spectators are expected to attend, with three title fights on the card for them to enjoy.
This is after a decision by Governor Ron DeSantis to allow sports events in Florida to be held with 100% capacity back in December 2020. This has been mirrored somewhat across the country, with various sports events and teams gradually allowing fans back into stadiums and arenas.
Distanced seating, mandatory masks and sanitizing stations have all been used in a bid to prevent these events from becoming super-spreader events for the COVID-19 virus, but we are now in a scenario where stadiums could soon be packed to capacity again.
This will come as welcome news to Floridians, as they are huge sports fans and have suffered for not being allowed to attend their favorite events over the past year. The UFC has often turned to Florida to host its marquee events, and it is, therefore, fitting that the first event in around a year which will have 100% capacity is being held in the Sunshine State.
There are set to be a number of measures in place to reduce the chances of transmission, such as contactless payments at concession stands, online ticketing, and staggered entry and exit from the stadium to ensure social distancing.
The Welterweight Championship bout is expected to be the headline event, with a Women’s Flyweight Championship match and a Women’s Strawweight Championship bout also featuring on the card, while there are two other fights that will also take place.
It will be interesting to see how many fans end up attending this event since these could serve as templates for other sports that are looking to bring fans back into arenas safely.
