Data from a recent Populous/Navigate Venue Readiness Report shows that Canadian sports fans are considerably less comfortable returning to sports venues than their American counterparts.
Thirty-four percent of Americans surveyed were more likely to say they wouldn’t be willing to attend any large indoor or outdoor events (crowd of 200-plus) right now, even with CDC guidelines in place. Over half, 54%, of Canadians felt that way. And 27% of Canadians thought it was most important to require all attendees of a sporting event to be vaccinated, while only 15% of Americans responded that way.
Neither group of fans felt overwhelmingly comfortable attending large events, though. And 58% of all respondents said they would be continuing social distancing for at least a few months after they received the vaccine, a finding that could impact the belief that venue capacities and attendance could rise significantly this summer and fall as life begins to return closer to pre-COVID times thanks to vaccinations.
The survey’s findings strengthen a belief that was already crystallizing for Populous senior architect and principal Sherri Privitera, selected as an SBJ Game Changer in 2015 and for Power Players in 2016.
“I think it’s going to be really important for venues and our clients to make and understand the necessity of a transition plan,” she said. “I think everyone thinks it’s going to be pre-vaccine and post-vaccine and we know, I mean we’re living it right now, the vaccine is out. It’s not widely distributed, it’s not getting done quick and I think it’s going to take longer than folks realize for us to get back.”
The transition plans that Privitera is recommending for Populous clients might stretch longer in some places, including Canada, home to teams in the NBA, NHL, MLB and MLS. Canadian respondents were more likely than Americans to say they’ll get the vaccine as soon as it’s available to them (42% to 35%), and likelier to continue social distancing six to 12 months afterward (22% to 17%). But reducing venue capacity was still more important to Canadians than Americans, who tended to be more content with safety measures that tried to combat the spread of COVID-19 within the venue (hand washing stations, hand sanitizer, disinfecting surfaces). Canadians were more likely to say that various safety measures would not affect their desire to attend live sporting events.
The Populous/Navigate survey interviewed 1,951 Americans and 451 Canadians, part of research Populous, a Kansas City-based design firm, conducts to inform its work and its clients. Populous recently assisted the Tampa Sports Authority and the NFL with creating its safety protocols for Sunday’s Super Bowl, according to Eric Hart, president and CEO of the TSA (operator of Raymond James Stadium).
