Carabao Cup, FA Cup finals hoping for reduced-capacity crowds

Earlier this month, the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club declared that it hopes to welcome reduced-capacity crowds for this summer's Wimbledon Championships. 

The Football Association wishes to do the same for the Carabao Cup and FA Cup finals. 

Martyn Ziegler of The Times reported on Monday that the Carabao Cup and FA Cup finals are listed as potential test events for permitting socially distanced spectators to return to sporting events in the spring and summer months. Tottenham Hotspur will face Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final on April 25, while the FA Cup final is set for May 15. 

Outside of a handful of matches during the current campaign, fans have not been allowed to attend Premier League games since the resumption of the 2019-20 season last summer due to COVID-19 concerns. As Ziegler wrote, roughly 15 million people in the United Kingdom have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, and it's assumed the shots will allow competitions to partially fill stadiums before summer begins. 

San Francisco 49ers president Al Guido addressed the subject while speaking on NFL Network this past Friday. 

"Our goal now is let's get some shots in people's arms, let's make sure they stay safe," Guido said. "Let's save lives. Not just in this county but all over the country. So that we can get people back in Levi's Stadium to watch the San Francisco 49ers play on our field. That is the goal for all of us every single day right now."