As sports leagues work through coronavirus-related issues to resume playing, the Bears are optimistic their upcoming season will look somewhat normal at Soldier Field.
Team president and CEO Ted Phillips said Thursday the organization is planning to have fans in the stadium, though that’s not a certainty and he didn’t give specifics about reducing capacity to adhere to social distancing guidelines.
“We’re still extremely hopeful, confident, that we’re gonna have a season with fans,” he said as part of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce’s virtual meeting. “It’s only good business practice to look at contingencies, and if we’ve learned anything in the past three months it’s expect the unexpected... But we’re still extremely hopeful.”
Bulls president Michael Reinsdorf and Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts were also on the call and acknowledged that mandatory masks could be part of allowing fans back in stadiums. Phillips wasn’t given a chance to comment on that subject.
The NFL hasn’t lost games since the pandemic erupted during the football offseason. The NBA and NHL are working to resume their seasons this summer, and MLB is negotiating a July opening day.
That works in the NFL’s favor since it can monitor issues that arise in the other sports. Teams will open training camp late next month, the first preseason game is Aug. 6 and the season is scheduled to begin in mid-September. Phillips said the league has yet to distribute testing and treatment protocols.
“With football you have more physical contact, so we know there’s going to be some positive tests,” he said. “We know there will be in every sport... When there’s enough testing and there’s quick results, we’ll be able to show the players that they can be kept safe.
“The goal is... if someone tests positive, identify them, isolate them, treat them and keep moving on with our game. And I think we’ll be able to do that.”
Phillips also reiterated that the NFL continues to plan on holding its season as scheduled, though there could be a reduction of preseason games. He added that “flexibility is built in” to accommodate any interruption or delay to the regular season.
