KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Chiefs are once again in the running to play in the Super Bowl, but if they win, this year's celebration would be a far cry from the massive parade nearly a year ago.
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas said Tuesday that a classic Super Bowl parade would be "highly unlikely" given the severe state of the COVID-19 pandemic, which gripped Kansas City just a few weeks after the Chiefs' victory last February.
"But there will be different ways that we come up with to try to celebrate," Lucas said on the University of Kansas Health System's daily briefing Tuesday morning.
The Chiefs have not yet made it to the Super Bowl, but Lucas' communications director, Morgan Said, said that a possible celebration could be an event at Arrowhead Stadium, which has been limiting capacity to 22%, or about 16,000 fans, to allow for social distancing at games.
The Chiefs defeated the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, earning them a spot in the AFC Championship game against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. If they win that game, they earn a spot in the Super Bowl on Feb. 7.
At this time last year, Chiefs fans were filling bars and restaurants in every corner of Kansas City to watch the playoffs and celebrate victories.
But with the rapid spread of coronavirus, crowding together with hundreds of thousands of fans would be dangerous.
It's an echo of 1918, when, at the end of World War I, Americans poured into the streets on what became Armistice Day, reigniting the flu pandemic and killing thousands.
Lucas, notably a dedicated Chiefs fan, also raised the prospect of worsening COVID-19 spread as the result of smaller celebrations. Kansas City and several surrounding counties adopted some of their strictest restaurant, bar and gathering rules before the holidays to prevent the virus from spreading among friends and family.
The AFC Championship game and, if the Chiefs win, the Super Bowl raise the same concern, he said.
"Don't get me wrong, I am so excited about the Chiefs' playoff run, but house parties — a lot of the things that we actually thought could be concerns during the holiday season come in this kind of holiday season, part two."
Last week, Kansas City and most surrounding counties eased a 10 p.m. curfew so that bars and restaurants can stay open until midnight. Jackson and Wyandotte counties allow them stay open until 12:30 a.m.
On Sunday, the metropolitan area added more than 440 cases. The seven-day average for new cases was 726. One week ago, it was 977. Two weeks ago, it was 872. Since the onset of the pandemic, COVID-19 has killed 1,152 people in the Kansas City metro.
Before signing off of the briefing, Lucas reminded residents to keep taking precautions to limit the spread of COVID-19.
"Keep wearing masks, and also, if you go to a super crowded restaurant or bar and it just doesn't seem right, maybe it's not the place to go on and eat or drink that night," Lucas said. "There is still coronavirus that's spreading around. Make sure you stay safe."
