The Recovery of our Favourite Sports

Postponements and cancellations are happening everywhere you turn - it doesn’t matter which sport or game you’re a fan of, it’s a tough time to be involved. With the cancellations come a host of other issues to be addressed, and with the uncertainty of how long this could continue on for, being prepared as either an athlete or organization may be difficult.

Athlete Fitness - as football matches are postponed or fights are cancelled, being able to stay in the elite shape to compete may be difficult. Football clubs across the country have already announced that their training grounds will be closed for the duration of the epidemic - we have seen some athletes reporting that they still have a regular training schedule whilst at home as well as strict diets to stay in the best possible shape, but if the crisis continues and is extended for too long, what level of fitness could we see from these athletes when they do return?

Fan Attendance - For the few events that are still able to take place, no fans being in attendance is becoming the normal. We are fortunate in the digital era that streaming platforms and services have advanced enough to provide coverage in real time, but as people begin to return to work, how will this affect events that are changing schedules? Maybe days have already been booked off of work, hotel rooms reserved and travel plans made - but with the shuffling around that will need to be done following this, there may not be any guarantee that those who had booked everything to be in attendance will still be able to show up.

Another thing that may need to be considered when dealing with the recovery of sporting events globally are the logistics of changing much of what will need to be moved - for bigger events such as the olympics, all the preparations that need to be made have already been pushed back for at least a year. If the world cup isn’t moved in 2022, then players and team managers alike will need to make decisions on how to best manage their teams as they have much less time that usual to make any arrangements.

We also find businesses that rely on our favourite sporting events will need a plan of action - our favourite bookies may have taken a hit but many are being sustained by their online casino counterparts, and sites not on Gamstop are reviewed here. But as mentioned with fan attendance, hotels and restaurants that may rely on the foot traffic of people attending these events will also suffer from the big disruption in business.

Where some may find difficult, however, sports fans are a passionate bunch - for all the negative taking place right now there is also a lot of positive happening - athletes are reaching out to their fans and offering words of encouragement whilst people are in lockdown, continued news on transfer windows and player movements, and the few events that are still taking place are drawing in huge numbers. What is shaping up as a global disaster, could show the incredible resilience of sports fans across the world.