Focus On Non-League Football During The Coronavirus Pandemic

CONGLETON, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 19: Visiting supporters and players celebrating their team's goal as Congleton Town (white) play Coventry United in an FA Vase Third Round tie at Ivy Gardens. The home team were founded in 1901 and played in the North West Counties League Premier Division. They defeated their opponents from the Midland League Premier Division 4-3 on penalties after the match ended 1-1, watched by 300 spectators, the maximum permitted under Covid-19 restrictions. England went into full lockdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic in March 2020. By September 2020 non-League football grounds at Level 7 and below, six divisions down from the Premier League, were open to spectators once again, albeit with strict measures designed to curb the spread of the virus in place. Most clubs had one-way systems to guide supporters in and out of the grounds. Fans had to register entry to a game by scanning a QR code or simply giving their phone numbers for a rudimentary track and trace system, once pitchside they had to remain socially distanced from their fellow supporters. Advice and warning signs proliferated as did bottles of hand sanitiser gel. Social clubs could be used as long as masks were worn and alcohol was permitted inside the grounds. The players were restricted from using dugouts and the teams came onto the pitch via separate entrances from their dressing rooms. This continued until mid-October when away fans were barred from fixtures played between clubs from different areas and finally at the beginning of January 2021 spectators were once again required to stay away completely as the second wave of Covid-19 brought a new nationwide lockdown. Finally, the UK Government banned the staging of matches below the 'elite' level for an indefinite period, effective 1st January 2021, with the measures finally being relaxed at this level in June 2021. (Photo by Colin McPherson/Getty Images)