The Saskatchewan Roughriders will soon be requiring fans to have proof of full vaccination for COVID-19, or to be able to provide a negative COVID-19 test result to attend home games at Mosaic Stadium with a targeted start date of September 17th.
The organization shared a news release on Monday, August 30th that stated the Club has relied on expertise from provincial health officials to help guide the team as they re-opened Mosaic Stadium to fans at the beginning of August.
Since then, however, cases within the province have been on the rise, and the contagious nature of the Delta variant has become a concern to the Club, as well as to public health experts that are regularly advising them.
“In consultations with local medical health officers this past week, they voiced their support to begin requiring proof of vaccination at Roughrider games,” said President and CEO Craig Reynolds. “After speaking with our stakeholders, including the City of Regina – our stadium owner, REAL – our stadium operator, and the CFL we decided that this is the right decision for our Club and for our fans.”
Youth under the age of 12 that are currently unable to receive a vaccine will be exempt from this requirement.
For those that are partially vaccinated, or unable to receive the vaccine due to medical or religious reasons, a negative COVID-19 test taken within 48 hours of the start of the game will be accepted.
“We continue to strongly encourage all of our fans to get fully vaccinated for the safety of themselves and others and to wear masks to our games as an extra layer of protection,” Reynolds said.
The Rider Club has plans to work over the next several weeks on logistics for how to accept proof of vaccination, while working with the Saskatchewan Health Authority, REAL and provincial health officials.
As more information becomes available, it will be shared with the public.
