On Tuesday, the Toronto Raptors announced that the team will allow a limited number of fans to attend games at Tampa’s Amalie Arena.
The first chance to see the team in action at its temporary home comes on Friday, Dec. 18 during a preseason game against the Miami Heat. A release says tickets for that game—plus the first 11 regular season games—go on sale Thursday, Dec. 17 and start at $30.
Because of COVID-19, less than 3,200 seats will be made available for the preseason game. The regular season matchups will see 3,800 seats available; there will also be no floor seats or seats within 30 feet of the court.
“Fan attendance protocols will involve extensive health and safety measures, including socially distanced seat availability,” Roven Yau, the Raptors Senior Manager of Basketball Communications, wrote in the release. Additional safety measures including requiring all fans two years of age or older to wear a mask for the duration of their time at Amalie Arena.
“Enhanced surface and air disinfection systems; physical distancing in the stands and while navigating the venue; a health survey screening for all guests as they enter the facility; cashless payments in the parking lot and for food and beverage services,” the release added. Bags are also prohibited for all Raptors games at Amalie Arena.
Last month, citing Canada's COVID-19 travel restrictions, the team announced plans to play at least half of its home season in Tampa Bay.
“Ultimately, the current public health situation facing Canadians, combined with the urgent need to determine where we will play means that we will begin our 2020-21 season in Tampa, Florida,"Masai Ujiri, president of basketball operations for the Raptors wrote in a statement. “We commit to continuing our work together, planning for a safe return to play in Toronto… For now, I’ll ask you to cheer for us from afar.”
Early this month, it was still unclear whether the Raps would be able to have fans at Amalie.
Last month, Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that the NBA sent a memo to teams detailing the protocols for teams allowed to have fans at games. At the time, not every team was allowed to do so, and the ones that were had to implement very specific mask rules, adhere to strict food and drink regulations and also test for coronavirus depending on the county’s positivity rate. As of Friday, Hillsborough County has a positivity rate of about 8%, well above the World Health Organization's recommendation of 5% or less for at least two weeks before loosening social distancing protocols.
If you live in Tampa Bay and still wouldn't go to a professional sports event, Canadian English language sports network TSN is slated to broadcast the games.
Now, about this Tampa Raptors jersey.
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This article appears in Dec 24-30, 2020.