Sigh of Relief as Stadiums Are Reopened in South Africa, Ticket Sales Soar Immediately

• The sporting fraternity is breathing much easier after regulations were eased on how many spectators are allowed into venues
• Starting today, stadium capacity will be increased to 50% as lockdown restrictions continue to be lifted gradually by the South African government
• This was one of the big takeaways from president Cyril Ramaphosa' address to the nation last night

Starting this afternoon, sports venues across South Africa will increase spectator capacity to 50%.

This comes as the South African government continues to ease lockdown restrictions in combating the Covid-19 pandemic. President Cyril Ramaphosa made the announcement during a live address broadcast to the nation last night.

Almost exactly two years after Covid-19 dealt a blow to global professional sports and shut down live viewing of sports events in SA, major codes will breathe a sigh of relief.

According to TimesLIVE, Ramaphosa added that the State Of Disaster declared in March 2020 was in sight, with the public's input on health regulations thereafter to be factored in as the way forward was chartered.

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Ramaphosa said:

“The restrictions on gatherings are being significantly changed. In previous regulations the emphasis was on placing an upper limit on the number of people who could attend a gathering.

“The approach now is that both indoor and outdoor venues can take up to 50% of their capacity, provided that the criteria for entrance to those venues is proof of vaccination or a Covid-19 test not older than 72 hours.”

This news was met with immediate enthusiasm by the cricketing fraternity. SowetanLIVE reported SuperSport Park in Centurion had already made an extra 3 000 tickets available for this afternoon's deciding One Day International match between South Africa and Bangladesh.

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As reported by Sports Brief, Baxter explained that the teams around the world with the biggest and most passionate supporters were suffering the most, comparing the Amakhosi’s struggles to those of Liverpool FC.

Baxter admitted that his team needed to find a balance and professionalism to combat not having their passionate supporter base in the stadium.