SHERWOOD, Ore. — There’s going to be more excitement at high school games starting Friday night because for the first time this year there will be fans cheering in person. The Oregon Health Authority is now allowing a maximum of one hundred fifty people to attend outdoor sporting events, in counties that are in the moderate risk category for COVID 19.
This will be the first time there are people in the stands for football games since the fall of 2019.
The Executive Director of the Oregon School Activities Association, Peter Weber, said there can now be up to 150 people on the field with players and coaches, and then in the stands, there can be another 150.
How this will look will depend on the school and the space they have. Athletic directors in the metro area said there are only allowing the parents of players, cheerleaders and band members right now. There will be no visiting side allowed in, only the family members of the home team.
Ken Bell is the Director of Facilities and Operations at Sherwood High School. He says they are going to have one separate entrance and exit for everyone who enters inside the stadium.
Bell said that each football player and cheerleader will be given two tickets they can give to their parents so they can watch the game and parents will have to register before the game. Everyone is required to wear a mask and social distance themselves.
With COVID 19 numbers slowly trending down, Bell hopes there could be a chance for students to be back cheering someday soon.