Fans are set to return to sports stadiums in England

Sports venues in England are set to return to full capacity from July 19 after the Government announced plans to ease the remaining restrictions on social distancing.

Crowds have either been kept out entirely or allowed in severely restricted numbers since the coronavirus pandemic took hold in the UK in March last year.

Test events with higher attendances have been held as part of a Government programme since April.

However, the Government is confident that the success of the vaccine rollout has helped to break the link between rates of infections and rates of hospitalisation and death due to Covid-19.

A final decision on whether to lift the remaining restrictions in England on July 19 will be taken next Monday, but the intention is for stadiums to operate at full capacity from that date.

Colchester are currently in the process of selling match permits to fans, in readiness for their return next month.

Their first game of the new League Two season to take place at the Community Stadium will be against Northampton Town, on August 14.

But at this stage, there will still be some restrictions in place for returning U's fans.

Fans will not be able to sit in a specific seat - they will be assigned a seat per game which they need to have bought before arriving at the stadium.

This may change game-to-game with the social distancing measures that are in place at the stadium, and could vary depending on the attendance.

Fans will have to join the correct bubble and will be asked to complete a COVID-19 questionnaire prior to the game via email, which will inform them of the current guidelines for the stadium.

All questionnaires will need acknowledging and passing before a ticket is sent to fans.

The ticket will be a Print@Home ticket, which can also be used and viewed on a smartphone.

If access is denied, a Permit Holder will be supplied with an iFollow code to watch the match, with the balance of the ticket applied to a Privilege card.

Fans' departure from the stadium on matchday may also be staggered.

U's chairman Robbie Cowling said in a statement last month: "The positive news is that the Permit system that we developed last season was not only extremely safe but was also very robust and very flexible.

"It allows us to work with whatever restrictions there are and if all restrictions suddenly get completely lifted only to be re-introduced again it can deal with that too.

"Finding that safe and viable solution was far from easy but I don’t believe any part of the permit system to be more complicated than it needs to be."

EFL Chief Executive Trevor Birch says clubs are looking forward to welcoming fans back to grounds.

Birch said: “The EFL welcomes today’s positive announcement by the Prime Minister that capacity restrictions are expected to be lifted later this month, which will allow us to finally press forward with our plans to see a full return of fans to EFL stadiums from the start of the new EFL season in just four weeks’ time.

“Football has been planning for this outcome since the outset of the pandemic and having been forced to endure empty stadiums since March 2020, the message from EFL Clubs is that we are ready to re-open and welcome fans back in numbers.

“From the EFL’s own participation in the Events Research Programme and our Club’s extensive experience built up over many years, we are confident that all our Clubs can successfully manage large scale events and we will continue to work with the Government on the guidance that will help support their matchday operations.

“Today’s developments, of course, have been made possible by the staff at the NHS and countless medical experts and scientists who have helped to develop and roll-out the vaccines.

"On behalf of the League and its membership, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for playing such an important role in helping re-open our sport and wider society.”