Levi's Stadium is preparing to welcome back San Francisco 49ers fans at full capacity for the upcoming season. However, that doesn't mean things will return to the pre-COVID status quo. The world has changed, and the 49ers will adapt. Fans will have to adjust as well.
The last time fans were allowed into Levi's Stadium for a game was for the NFC Championship to watch the home-team Niners pummel the Green Bay Packers on the way to Super Bowl LIV. San Francisco's regular-season opener will be a matchup against that same team. Before that, Levi's Stadium will host two preseason games — one against the Kansas City Chiefs and the other against the Las Vegas Raiders.
49ers CEO Jed York spoke at the London-based Leaders seminar and shared some thoughts on the reopening of Levi's Stadium and how fan safety is a top priority.
"I clearly think that will be a big piece for at least what this football season looks like because COVID is not going away, at least in our minds," York said via Cam Inman of Bay Area News Group. "So we're going to have to be doing a lot of things and a lot of hand-holding with our fans and just know it's going to be a little different than the 2019 season and all the seasons pre-COVID."
Those changes could include mask requirements, temperature checks at the gates, and potentially COVID tests and vaccine passports to gain access. Full capacity may mean more stringent requirements. If you plan to head to a game, prepare yourself for that.
Obviously, York is excited to get fans back through the doors.
"Our fans are anxious to get back," York added. "… When you're the NFC champions, and you don't get to celebrate that with fans at all, that was one of the really hard things for us in 2020 because our fans were such a huge part to what that 2019 season was."
York also shared some thoughts on gauging fan reactions to team moves, the perils of social media, and the movement started by Colin Kaepernick and the 49ers' being on the forefront of supporting social equality.
Click here to read the rest of York's comments.