GAA, soccer and rugby will all be out of bounds under the Government’s new lockdown plan.
The Cabinet is expected to call foul on any non-elite contact sports training or matches being played in December, which rules out virtually all of our popular team sports.
It will come as a hammer blow to the hundreds of amateur and children’s leagues all over the country that have been on pause for nearly six weeks.
They had hoped to get the green light to get back out onto the pitches and catch up on games - or even training - over the festive season.
And it could cost charities millions of euro as sports clubs who traditionally hold charity tournaments on St Stephen’s Day or New Year’s Day will be warned to call these off.
Sources in the Department of Sport have told Dublin Live that it will be “a strict Level 3” on the sports front.
It is expected that the rules will maintain the ban on all training in contact sports.
Pods of 15 will be allowed train in non-contact sports, while any contact sports training would have to take place on a solo basis.
The rules will state that there will be no matches played in December, “except for specific exemptions,” but there will be no excpetions in reality.
It will also be confirmed tonight that this year’s All Ireland hurling and football finals will be played behind closed doors because spectators are not being allowed back under the new reduced lockdown rules.
Golf and other sports where contact can clearly be avoided and social distancing maintained, like tennis, are also expected to get the all-clear again.
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