Plenty of unknowns remain about the return of live professional sporting events, but one thing is certain: Fans will not be in attendance for the foreseeable future.
NASCAR announced that its premier Cup Series season will restart without fans May 17. The PGA Tour will restart June 11 with no fans for at least its first four events. They'll follow in the footsteps of the WWE, which has held events, including Wrestlemania, without fans for two months.
The timeline is slower for major team sports leagues. They must account for more people _ players, coaching staffs, officials, etc. _ essential to the operation. Widespread testing for the coronavirus is considered a prerequisite.
Major League Baseball suspended operations during spring training March 12, but officials are confident they can hold some form of a regular season. NBA officials remain hopeful the league can salvage its regular season and playoffs. The NHL ruled out playing at neutral sites and the latest plan is to hold playoff games in NHL venues in four "hub" cities to minimize travel. It is considering playing into October and delaying the start of the 2020-21 season.
MLS will reopen training facilities for players next week and is tentatively scheduled to resume its season June 8. The WNBA is contemplating quarantining teams and playing in one neutral location. The NFL has time to wait it out.
None of the leagues are expected to have fans at games to start _ possibly into 2021. They will be made for television with billions of dollars at stake.
It will be uncharted territory, for the most part. Only MLB and the PGA Tour have held events without fans. The American Hockey League, the NHL's top minor league, has also staged games without fans.
They were similar in their strangeness. Here's a look at those few examples, and a peek into what temporarily will be our new normal.
