We do know that the FA have submitted their action plan for getting football back underway, to the Department for Culture Media and Sport. Once approved, this will signify that football is “in compliance with COVID-19 Secure guidance”, a prerequisite for any organisation that wishes to operate outside of the general Coronavirus guidance.
The burning question occupying Club Officials, fans and players alike, is what concessions have the FA had to make to get us playing and watching again? Indeed, these negotiations have gone on behind closed doors, so to speak, with no consultation of the Leagues and more importantly the Clubs, who will be required to implement the guidance.
The FA made it clear at a Leagues meeting on June 19th that non-league football can only be played in front of fans, yet we don’t know how many fans that might be and there is growing speculation in the game that the FA’s insistence about playing in front of fans may not extend to pre-season. Indeed, the FA also talked about restarting the non-league pyramid at the same time, but there is growing speculation that the FA have reneged on that commitment, preferring instead to start the National League ahead of the Leagues below. The staggered restart may prove to be a sensible strategy, but if found to be correct, it calls into question all of the governing bodies other commitments to the grassroots game.
In terms of the detail, we know that wearing a face covering in shops and supermarkets will become mandatory from July 24th, but we don’t know whether this will extend to football grounds. We know that pubs and restaurants have been collecting contact details to support the test and trace programme, so we can only assume that Clubs, already following much of the advice required for the hospitality industry to re-open, will need to do the same. One way systems, hand sanitising stations and socially distanced queuing are all measures we’ve been coming to terms with in recent months, but unlike the supermarkets and petrol stations, the responsibility to implement and manage these restrictions will fall on the volunteers, not paid professionals.
How rigorously these restrictions will need to be implemented and whether there is any elasticity in the guidance between the top and the bottom of the pyramid, remains to be seen. Football is notoriously a game of the haves and the have nots and if we are to get back playing and watching again, the whole of the football family will need to come to terms with this new reality. As with pubs, some Clubs will be better at adhering to the guidance than others. Leagues lack both the inclination and resources to police Clubs efforts to become Covid compliant. So where will the final responsibility lie?
The FA’s own guidance to the Leagues has put the onus back onto the Clubs. Every Club at Steps 1 to 6 is responsible for producing their own Action Plan, which must be published on the Club’s website, whether they have one or not. So for any fan, player or official not happy with the arrangements they find at particular grounds, what should they do and will this be addressed in the FA’s guidance?
We really are in this together, so for anyone concerned about the suitability of a Clubs Covid compliance I’d suggest a friendly word in the ear of the Chairman is the right way to go. If we really want football to return we all going to have to work collectively to make sure that restrictions are applied and respected. I’m not advocating turning a blind eye to breaches of compliance, simply that our focus should be on constructive criticism. If Clubs can’t, or won’t, address the most important aspects of making their facilities Covid safe then I’d suggest its up to the County FA’s to step in, given that they have the personnel and punitive powers to bring Clubs into line.
The guidance published by the FA can’t only address how Clubs can open up to spectators or how players can safely use changing rooms, it needs to recognise that a shorted 2020/21 season will bring with it its own challenges. What if we experience a second wave, would we void another season? Would we take a pre-season played behind closed doors, if it meant grounds could open up to some, or all, spectators from September?
As the days pass, speculation grows about what footballs “new normal” will look like and who’ll get to watch it. The Coronavirus, much like the great British weather, won’t observe the niceties of the Leagues Committee’s meeting schedule, so we need to come up with an approach that is better, more responsive and much more representative of our football family and our beautiful game. Whether we get that detail by the end of this week remains to be seen, but there can be no doubt that a one size fits all approach won’t work for the non-league pyramid, whether the start is staggered or not.
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