Premier League looking to get in 500 away fans
The Premier League has contacted clubs to get their views on allowing up to 500 away fans at matches in the final two rounds of the season.
Under the current government plans, which are scheduled for a final review on May 10, up to 10,000 supporters could be permitted into football grounds from May 17.
The Carabao Cup final on April 25 welcomed the largest gathering of spectators since the coronavirus pandemic hit last year, as 8,000 fans descended on Wembley to watch Manchester City take on Tottenham Hotspur.
Richard Masters, the Premier League’s chief executive, has written to clubs for their opinions on the possibility of including up to 500 away fans within the permitted 10,000.
In a letter to the clubs, he said: “The government has informed us that, as Covid-19 indicators continue to improve, it is planning to relax the ‘no away fans’ stipulation from the stage-five guidance, governing the playing of our final match rounds in season 2020-21.
“The return of fans and, ultimately, full stadiums remains our primary goal.
“That being the case, the executive proposes an away-ticket allocation of 5% of available capacity (a maximum of 500 away fans) at round 37 and 38 matches, respecting the £30 awayticket price cap.”
Meanwhile, four more law suits have been launched against the book Putin’s People, whose publishers are already being sued by Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich.
Oil company Rosneft and three high-profile Russian businessmen have brought claims against HarperCollins, publishers of Catherine Belton’s book.
Rosneft and businessman Shalva Chigirinsky have also brought defamation claims specifically against author Belton.
Abramovich took the rare step of launching defamation claims against HarperCollins and Belton in March, criticising “false or misleading statements” the Chelsea owner believes are damaging both his reputation and the Premier League club.
Now a clutch of new suits have been filed against Belton’s book, that attempts to link Russian state influence tothewest.
A spokesperson for Abramovich said the Chelsea owner learned of these new claims on their release into the public domain, but had no further knowledge of the fresh law suits.
“We became aware of these law suits as they became publicly available in the court files, ” Abramovich’s spokesperson said.