Is Arrowhead Stadium safe for fans in a pandemic? Here’s what Kansas City Chiefs learned
Rex Archer was skeptical about people going to football games during the pandemic. And in hindsight, the Kansas City health director cringes at the thought of COVID-19 inside overcrowded, understaffed high school stadium restrooms.
But he says allowing a limited number of fans at Kansas City Chiefs’ games has been an unqualified success.
“There’s actually no question that it’s been successful,” Archer told me. “We’ve not actually had any cases traced to exposure at the games. I’m particularly pleased with how this has gone.”
In fact, advance testing of those headed to Arrowhead Stadium’s indoor suites prevented an average of four to a dozen or more COVID-positive fans from even attending.
Indeed, the team’s extensive planning and collaboration with Archer last summer became something of a model for the National Football League.
“It kind of became the standard for those NFL stadiums that were going to be able to allow fans at all. They kind of looked at our approach. I had some meetings with NFL leadership,” he says.
Archer initially recommended against attending games, which The Star Editorial Board did as well and still stands by. Yet, Archer does suspect there’s one surprising and happy byproduct of allowing fans in: They might otherwise have watched the games in a bar, restaurant or home-based gathering — indoor venues much more conducive to virus spread.
So, in short, that may have served to reduce community spread, he says.
Archer credits the entire Chiefs organization for its cooperation and responsiveness to his every safety suggestion.
““There’s never been any pushback. You have a good, quality organization and it makes life a lot easier,” Archer says. “The reason the Chiefs win isn’t just because of their great players and coaches. But they have a solid organization at every level.”
The city health director also is convinced the learning experience with the Chiefs — which began with a couple of small test crowds late last summer before the season began — will inform any consultation he has with the Kansas City Royals in advance of their season. Vaccinations may be an additional Royals advantage.
“It’ll happen,” he says of talks with the Royals (should Major League Baseball agree). “We’ll get that done in plenty of time to figure out how to open safely.” One word of caution, he says: The new virus strain making the rounds in other states is more contagious, and the young are more susceptible to it.
And one other note of caution about Chiefs’ playoff games: Archer says traveling fans of the visiting playoff team could bring the virus with them from out of town. Ironically, though, it’s more of a concern for the community than the Arrowhead fans.
“That’s a little bit of a concern,” Archer says. “But in regards to the actual exposure at the stadium, I don’t think there’s any additional concern because we’ve got the right protections in place.”
The Chiefs’ success — and Archer’s, to be honest — is, unsurprisingly, the result of masks, carefully calibrated distancing (even in parking lots) and orderly and controlled pursuit of concessions and restrooms. In addition, after the preseason pep rally events and the first few games had revealed lagging mask usage after eating and drinking and as the hours wore on, the Chiefs responded with more late-game PA system reminders — and even pre-printed “wear your mask” signs for ushers to flash at patrons from a distance.
It also turned out to be a good rule of thumb to keep attendance at about 20% of Arrowhead’s 76,000, or just less than 16,000.
There was a scare in September when a fan at the team’s opening game, who must have been infected before arriving at Arrowhead, reported a positive COVID test the day afterward. And although those around the fan were told to quarantine, none apparently caught it.
Attending games in a pandemic isn’t for everyone, nor should it be. But the Chiefs and Archer have teamed up to make it as safe as can be.
Kansas City’s George Toma became groundskeeper to the stars in American sports.
Dr. Rex Archer may have just made a name for himself in — what, sports public health?
