Fans could be allowed at Rentschler for Nov. 1 Toronto-Miami match
The details need to be finalized, but it is looking as if Toronto FC’s final regular season game scheduled for Rentschler Field will include a limited number of fans in attendance.
David Lehman, Commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community Development, said Thursday that the Nov. 1 game against Inter Miami CF could include fans at Rentschler Field. On Friday, Capital Region Development Authority Executive Director Michael Freimuth confirmed that date.
“I think the Nov. 1 game is our target,” Freimuth said. “I am not sure we are doing anything before that but part of it was going through the COVID protocols and try to make sure we understand them all. They have been issued by not only the state but by MLS. Understanding all of that is taking a little time, plus they want to be able to pre-sell so those are the two things grinding away at the moment and Nov. 1 is the rough target date.”
Toronto FC posted wins over Columbus and Philadelphia while playing with no fans at Rentschler Field, moving into first place in Major League Soccer’s Eastern Conference standings.
Toronto FC President Bill Manning suggested in a recent interview with Hearst Connecticut Media that the Oct. 18 games against Atlanta United FC and Nov. 1 contest against Inter Miami CF at Rentschler Field could include a limited number of fans.
Connecticut’s Phase 3 reopening allows for 50 percent capacity for outdoor event venues. Rentschler’s capacity is 40,000.
Toronto is 10-2-4 heading into Sunday’s game at FC
Cincinnati. They will be back at Rentschler on Wednesday against the New York Red Bulls and Atlanta on Oct. 18. There is also a game in East Hartford on Oct. 28 against New York City FC before playing its sixth and final regularseason game at Rentschler on Nov. 1.
Toronto and the other two Canadian teams were forced to find a temporary home base because of COVID-19 related travel restrictions of flying in and out of Canada. Manning, a former soccer at the University of Bridgeport, credited UConn men’s soccer coach Ray Reid for putting the idea of using Rentschler Field for home games and practices.
Freimuth expects a decision “soon” on getting Rentschler Field ready for fans and putting tickets out for sale.
“It is kind of why people are scrambling now trying to figure out what we need to staff up, what our projected crowd size might be and how to deal with that,” Freimuth said. “They are scrambling, they want to get it done now but I think we are still trying to figure our way through it.”
The CRDA not only over
sees Rentschler Field but also Dillon Stadium in Hartford which has allowed a limited number of fans in attendance at home matches for the USL Championship’s Hartford Athletic franchise. Hartford will play host to St. Louis in the USL Championship playoff opener on Saturday at 7 p.m. Dillon Stadium capacity was increased to 40 percent after allowing Dillon filled to 25 percent capacity during the regular season and those tickets have been sold. Although Dillon Stadium is a much smaller venue, the experience of getting a soccer facility ready for fans will be helpful when fans are allowed at Rentschler Field.
“You have a state cap on the number of people in the building, then you have social distancing and then there has to be separation between the team and the fans,” Freimuth said. “We have to be able to have a screening process, foodhandling protocols, those are probably the basic ones.”