As omicron surges, is it safe to attend sporting events?

COVID cases are on the rise in Indiana and across the country, due largely to the omicron variant. It is also one of the busiest times of the year for sporting events, from high school to college to the pros. 

Many venues have relaxed COVID restrictions both in terms of capacity limits and masking requirements so there are still risks with attending events with large numbers of people. We asked Dr. Chris Belcher, an infectious disease doctor at St. Vincent’s, about the risks of going to games and what fans can do to protect themselves.

Is it safe to attend sporting events with COVID cases on the rise?

“Safety is a somewhat relative term. It depends on a lot of stuff,” Belcher said. “It depends on who’s going, who they’re going to be around, what’s going on in the community and what precautions they take. It’s not absolutely safe by any means. One concern would be is that if you’re the person considering going and you have underlying medical problems — heart disease, lung disease, problems that may weaken your immune system — or if you’re of advanced age, up over 60 or 70, or 80, these are all risks for bad COVID, even when those people have been properly vaccinated.”

What factors and risks should fans consider before attending an event?

“Who are you going with? How are you getting there? Do you all have the same car? Are you going to wear masks in the car? What’s other people’s vaccination status?” Belcher said. “At the event you’re going to, are they able to enforce social distancing? Are you able to wear masks? (Also consider) things you have very little control over — whether other people are vaccinated, what’s the air circulation, are there adequate facilities to wash your hands? How much COVID is there in the community?”

‘There will be people at these events who have omicron and are contagious.’

COVID cases have increased by 126% in the United States over the past 14 days. Cases are up 26% in Indianapolis over the same timespan.

“Unfortunately, right now, with omicron, we’re seeing it set in rapidly and the number of cases is just skyrocketing,” he said. “There will be people at these events who have omicron and are contagious. These are all considerations in that risk discussion. Because of the high risk in the community, I would strongly discourage anyone who’s not vaccinated from going, and I would strongly discourage people who have underlying medical problems where the vaccine may not be as protective as it has been in the past to stay home as well.”