October 5 – Days after withdrawing from any attempts to host the Club World Cup this December, the South African Football Association (SAFA) have confirmed football fans will soon be returning to stadiums in South Africa, if they are fully vaccinated.
“In a meeting at SAFA House on Monday, 4 October 2021 attended by a delegation from the Ministry of Health, headed by Dr Phaahla and from the South African Football Association (SAFA) headed by President Dr Danny Jordaan, the Minister of Health said the return of fans to the stadium was a win win situation in the bigger scheme of things,” said SAFA in a statement.
On October 12, the World Cup qualifier between South Africa and Ethiopia will serve as a test event with supporters, who are fully vaccinated, allowed to attend for free, the first time in 19 months that a football match will have fans in the stands in South Africa.
The requirement to be vaccinated to enter the stadium is a part of a drive by the government to get more South Africans jabbed. Only 15% of the population has been fully vaccinated. If the vaccination campaign doesn’t speed up, the 70% threshold (a FIFA criteria for hosting) would only be reached in December 2022. In September, president Cyril Ramaphosa announced plans to introduce Covid-19 ‘vaccine passports amid widespread scepticism of the jab.
“This is music in my ears,” said Phaahla of the decision. “It is a win win situation, it will spur all and sundry, the clubs, players and the football business. We also want other sectors of the economy to return to normalcy if the majority of the population is vaccinated – sectors such as tourism, restaurants etc. So I am here to embrace and fully support SAFA’s initiative.”
He also reiterated that “No vaccination, No entry” will apply to everyone in South African football by the end of the month.
SAFA had contemplated bidding to host the Club World Cup after Japan withdrew because of the global health crisis, but could not meet FIFA’s requirements of allowing fans in the stands and having 70% of the population in the host country vaccinated.
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