FiveThirtyEight (05/12/20) Paine, Neil

A FiveThirtyEight/Ipsos survey of 1,109 Americans found that a majority of respondents would prefer that sports leagues wait to reopen at least until after the coronavirus is contained. Just 24% said they would be either very likely or somewhat likely to attend an event in person at the moment, and 58% said they would be “not at all likely.” About 35% to 40% said mandatory mask-wearing at games, social distancing requirements within stadiums, temperature screenings before entering, or a declining trend in local COVID-19 cases would increase their comfort level with live attendance. However, most agreed that said such measures would not persuade them that attendance was safe. The development of a vaccine appears to be the most critical factor in respondents' comfort with attending live games. Reluctance to attend, plus mixed feelings about paying to attend games when it is possible, could imperil the gate-receipts model that pro sports has always subscribed to. Less than half of respondents said they would be willing to spend the same amount for tickets as before the pandemic, while 33% “strongly” disagreed. In terms of reopening strategy, most respondents, 82%, required that all players get tested for COVID-19 before games.

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