“It’s good news to have a definitive date”
“It’s a shame its not sooner”
“I don’t know whether it will be profitable”
“I’ll be going through the restrictions in fine detail.”
The immediate thoughts of Ladbrokes Coral Head of Stadia Ian Smyth are probably being duplicated among the operators of the 14 other GBGB licensed stadia following the Government announcement that stadiums will be allowed to re-open on October 1 writes Floyd Amphlett.
The stadiums will be allowed to open subject to ‘Stage 5 guidance’ the full complexity of which can be seen here.
It is the ultimate painstaking guide to what will be permitted for the return from Covid restrictions and there is no doubt that while welcome, the announcement comes with several barbs.
Smyth said: “At least we now know where we stand, though I was hoping it would be a lot sooner than 10 weeks from now. But that is it. We have no choice and it is still subject to the Government’s pilot projects going to plan. We had already formulated our own plans for a return which were due to be printed today and can now be scrapped.
“There will be different restrictions for indoor seated customers, and the outside terraces, which we need to work out whether they are workable or not.
“Inside, the capacities at our four venues, working to 2 metre social distancing, vary from 228 customers (at Crayford, maximum normal capacity 1,250) to 450 customers, which is a huge variation.
“All of which comes with the strap-line that there isn’t another outbreak. It is very important to remember that as much as we want racing to be back to normal, we cannot afford another lockdown. The consequences would be huge; I am not sure how many of our trainers would be able to survive it.”
Meanwhile GBGB are in discussions with DCMS about the possibility of greyhound racing being involved in one of the pilot projects, which include specific cricket and horse racing events.
