Glentoran boss Mick McDermott hopes to see normal attendances return to Irish League grounds for the start of the new Danske Bank Premiership on August 28.
The vast majority of last season’s league games were played behind closed doors or in front of vastly reduced capacities because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
But with a successful vaccine rollout and big crowds returning to other major sporting events across the UK, there is a growing optimism that fans can return in larger numbers next season.
Approximately 1,000 Glentoran supporters will attend Thursday night’s Europa Conference League tie with The New Saints of Wales at The Oval, the club’s largest home gate in 16 months.
And while McDermott says the health and safety of spectators is key moving forward, he is relishing the prospect of a potential return to bumper gates in the weeks and months ahead.
He also believes enhanced gate receipts are crucial for the future financial security of local clubs.
“The days of big crowds coming into Irish League games again are hopefully at the start of next season,” said McDermott.
“We recently launched our season ticket sales and Ruth in the shop doesn’t remember us hitting the number we have in all her time here.
“Sponsorship is going up substantially as well, so things are good on both those fronts, but you need the capacity to let supporters into the ground.
“Last year would have been a bumper year for all the clubs in terms of supporter numbers because the league was so competitive, but I think that will feed into this season.
“We can comfortably get 3,000, 4,000, 5,000 or 6,000 spectators into the Oval, but the other teams also need Glentoran to be bringing 1,500 to their grounds.
“The sports sustainability money isn’t going to last forever and we all need to pay the bills.”
Irish League clubs, who hemorrhaged money during the pandemic, received crucial financial assistance when the NI Sports Sustainability Fund was released in March.
Vital money was distributed across all levels of football in Northern Ireland, with the likes of Glentoran receiving in the region of £450,000.
The Irish FA received just over £1.7m, with an additional £4.8m shared among clubs and leagues from grassroots level to the 12 Danske Bank Premiership clubs.
