The stands were empty and the stadium strangely calm. There was no music without an appointment. No promotions in play. Players in one canoe could easily hear each other’s conversations.
“You didn’t even have to use the riser enclosure,” former Baltimore Orioles director Buck Showalter told USA TODAY Sports. “You could just scream.”
Now, as the new coronavirus continues to spread, the idea of hosting spectatorless sporting events in the United States has moved from a distant hypothesis to a legitimate possibility.
Several NBA team leaders have told USA TODAY Sports that they have considered playing behind closed doors, but only as a last resort emergency plan. They requested anonymity because they were not allowed to speak publicly about the situation.
It is a step that sports leagues around the world have already taken to try to slow the spread of COVID-19, which has now infected more than 93,000 people in 76 countries.
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In the United States, where the spread of the virus has been more limited, the university and professional sports leagues have been largely unaffected. However, if the situation worsens, the leagues would probably prefer to organize games without supporters rather than cancel them, in part because of the important financial implications involved.
“We will be evaluating other upcoming events in the coming days,” said Sharks Sports & Entertainment in a statement.
“WE DON’T STOP LIFE”:Sharks fans watch game despite call for cancellation
Across the country, Johns Hopkins University announced Thursday that it would not allow fans to watch division III tournament games held at school this weekend for fear of coronavirus. .
Public health officials of course hope that the notion of widespread, crowd-free American sporting events remains purely hypothetical. Just like the players, many of whom have not even considered the possibility of playing several games in empty arenas.
“You’re still trying to have a home advantage. But not having fans? It would be crazy,” said Philadelphia 76ers forward Glen Robinson III. “I just pray over it and hope this thing can slow down and come to an end.”
Financial and dissemination layers
Thursday, the only major American sports cancellations linked to the coronavirus at issue Chicago State University, a Division I school that has canceled some of its men’s and women’s basketball games – including a road trip to the Seattle area, where the majority of American coronavirus cases have been diagnosed.
Major sports organizations – including the NCAA, MLB, NBA and NHL – have taken more measured measures, asking athletes to avoid high-fives and forming panels to monitor the risks associated with coronaviruses.
An advocacy group, however, called for “serious discussion” about not allowing fans to attend March Madness games this month.
The tournament, which begins March 17, will include 67 games at 14 locations across the country. It is also the largest money maker in the NCAA. The iteration of the event in 2018 generated $ 844.3 million in television and marketing rights, making the idea of the cancellation totally unfathomable.
Holding the NCAA tournament behind closed doors, of course, would also have far-reaching financial implications – just like at all levels of the sport, from NBA games to small professional tennis tournaments.
“There are so many layers to it,” said David Carter, an associate professor of sports commerce in Southern California. “It’s just all of these cascading effects.”
Carter and other sports and business law experts have said that it is difficult to tackle the potential economic ramifications of American sports behind closed doors without knowing more details – which leagues or events would be affected and for what period of time.
The absence of Masters fans, for example, would have a greater impact on the local economy in Augusta, Georgia, than a few crowded NHL games in an intermediate market. And while agreements with the media and sponsors would generally not be affected, a minor league baseball team in North Carolina may be more dependent on ticket revenues than the New York Yankees – even if the costs associated with the game also decreased.
“You (wouldn’t) need bailiffs, ticket agents, dealerships and parking attendants,” said Carter. “It’s a small, small, small number – but it will also be appreciated to the extent that it would cost exactly.”
When approached by USA TODAY Sports, coaches and executives from several leagues were reluctant to talk about potential problems with the coronavirus – financial or otherwise.
Person familiar with NBA team operations told USA TODAY Sports that the business side of their Eastern Conference team was taking a closer look at what fanless games would be like, noting that the impact could be perceptible. But the person warned that it is far from that point today, with only five weeks remaining in the regular season.
Another NBA official from another team said that despite losing revenue, playing games without fans would be better than canceling them completely, which he said would create a programming nightmare.
Then there is the aspect of broadcasting to consider. Would crowdless games undermine the excitement of TV shows or actually increase interest?
“You will potentially attract a larger audience, because there will not be those fans who are usually in the seats,” said Irwin Kishner, co-chair of the sports law group at Herrick, Feinstein, who has negotiated several TV channels and media. rights agreements. “And it would certainly attract people to watch it, because it would be something new.”
“Peaceful, but just weird”
It is not clear whether the sports leagues would move the matches behind closed doors only after a request from public health officials or as a preventive measure on their own.
Although measles epidemics on various occasions in 1985 and 1989 led to a handful of basketball and hockey games in near-empty locations, the crowded sporting events in the United States have been largely the under- product of weather or safety issues rather than public health issues.
In 2008, for example, the AAA-class Iowa Cubs played a game without spectators after severe flooding in Des Moines. Four years later, golf enthusiasts were prevented from attending the third round of AT&T National in Bethesda, Maryland, after a night storm littered the course with fallen trees and limbs.
“It was peaceful,” Jim Furyk told The Associated Press after his tour, “but just strange.”
Without a doubt, the most memorable crowd-free game took place in Baltimore – an afternoon that its participants described as strange but unforgettable.
San Francisco Giants pitcher Kevin Gausman, who pitched for the Orioles in this game, remembers realizing it was the first time he had returned to T-ball that he had never played in front of fans . Players on the field could hear the broadcasters calling the game and the referees arguing between the outs.
“Definitely a unique experience,” said Giants teammate Jeff Samardzija, who started the game for the White Sox. “Honestly, I would not recommend it.”
After his experience in 2015, Samardzija said that he would strongly recommend postponing and rescheduling matches, rather than playing in vacant and quiet stadiums.
“It is a game to be played in front of fans,” he said. “I understand that a lot of people watch TV these days, but it’s definitely a spectator sport.”
Other players and coaches agreed, with the hope that the mandates in Italy, Japan and Switzerland will never be fulfilled in the United States.
But they also understand the importance of being careful.
“It’s a nice privilege to be able to play basketball, but I wish I could live many years after that,” said Los Angeles Lakers goalkeeper Alex Caruso. “If it is a legitimate thing that must be done, do what you have to do.”
Contributor: The Associated Press
Follow the journalists on Twitter @MarkG_Medina, @BNightengale, @Tom_Schad and @JeffZillgitt.