Colombia to allow 30% attendance of Copa America

Bogota (AFP) – Colombia said Tuesday it would open its stadiums to the public for the 2021 Copa America it will co-host with Argentina, with a 30-percent maximum attendance due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“A Copa America without an audience would make no sense,” Sports Minister Ernesto Lucena told Caracol Radio.

“We are already working on the sanitary protocol to have a capacity of about 30 percent,” he added.

That number may be upped if Colombia’s vaccination campaign goes according to plan, and the number of coronavirus cases drops, said the minister.

To date, 149,000 people have received a shot out of 35 million the country wants to vaccinate in 2021.

The 47th edition of the Americas Cup, which was postponed last year due to the pandemic, will be played from June 11 to July 10, the first time it will be hosted by two countries.

Colombia’s sports stadiums have been closed to the public since March last year.