RENEWED ENERGY
Energy FC will resume its season on July 13 with a home match against in-state rival Tulsa
Energy FC will resume league play July 13 against in- state rival FC Tulsa in a nationally televised match at Taft Stadium.
The first Black Gold Derby of the season will air live on ESPN2 at 6 p. m. All season seat members will be permitted to attend, and a limited number of single-game tickets will go on sale Tuesday at 10 a.m.
The USL Championship announced Thursday the schedule of games for the league's resumption of the 2020 season. Nine games are scheduled on opening weekend between July 11-13, with five of those contests to be aired live on ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes. The remaining games will all be available on ESPN+.
Energy FC's opener will be one of three Black Gold Derby matches scheduled during the revised season. The clubs will meet twice in Tulsa.
The USL Championship reorganized the 2020 regular season schedule with mostly regional play after halting in March because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the new schedule, Energy FC is grouped with teams from Oklahoma and
Texas. Each team in the group will play each other three times.
Energy FC also will play three crossover games against Sporting Kansas City II, New Mexico United and the Colorado Springs Switchbacks. The Tulsa match on July 13 will be the first of seven regular season home games. The playoffs will begin the second weekend of October.
Energy FC is planning additional safety protocols for its home matches, including providing face masks to anyone who wants one. As of now, fans will not be required
to wear masks at the games, but Energy FC spokesman Tyler Vaughn said in an email to The Oklahoman that the club is following city guidelines and "would adjust accordingly if deemed required."
In addition, Taft Stadium will have more than 40 hand sanitizer locations. Spots on the ground will be marked to follow social distance protocols at ticket windows, entry points, concession stands and merchandise locations.
The club also plans on using temporary plexiglass barriers at the two
main concession stands. The box office already has a barrier.
All hard touch surfaces will be disinfected before and after matches and the number of in-game cleaning of restrooms will be increased.
Common areas including food trucks, kids zone and group outing areas will not be in use during the season. Bags will be prohibited to speed up security lines and decrease the need for close interaction.
No tailgating will be allowed in parking lots controlled by Energy FC.