NFL Will Require Fans to Wear Masks at Games This Season

Be ready to mask up if you want to attend an NFL game in 2020.

Here’s official word from the league’s public relations wing:

Fans at NFL games this season will have to wear masks. That is, if fans are allowed to attend games in the first place.

Bears CEO Ted Phillips said he was “hopeful” the tea would play games at Soldier Field with fans in 2020. And while there is a chance that games could be played with fans in the stands at some point this season, it doesn’t appear as if it will happen right away. But because the NFL hasn’t made rules regarding fan attendance beyond today’s mask initiative, fans are mostly in the dark.

The NFL shifted responsibility to local jurisdictions to make determinations regarding how many (if any) fans will be in the stands when games kick off. And while I don’t like the idea of passing the buck, I can appreciate that at least the league reportedly has kicked around other game-day related initiatives ahead of the season.

Time is ticking. The NFL’s 101st season kicks off with on September 10. And the Bears’ season opener is scheduled for September 13 against the Lions in Detroit.

written by

Luis C. Medina, who you can find on Twitter at lcm1986, has been covering the Chicago Bears at Bleacher Nation since 2017. Since then, he has written about 3 head coaches, 5 play-callers, and 11 starting quarterbacks. Previously, Luis wrote about the Cubs and MLB at BN (2015-16) and worked in the Chicago Tribune sports department (2011-16). He also co-hosted a Cubs postgame show, Outside the Ivy, in 2019.

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