NFL
Despite virus surge in LA, NFL committed to SoFi Stadium Super Bowl
The Super Bowl LVI 2022 final is scheduled for 13 February at the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood California with concerns growing about possible further covid restrictions.
The NFL (National Football League) have confirmed that they have no plans to move next month's Super Bowl from Los Angeles due to a spike in coivid-19 cases, and said its discussions with alternative sites is part of normal contingency planning.
The championship game at SoFi Stadium comes as officials have been weighing whether to cap attendance at large events to stem the spread of the highly contagious omicron variant.
Los Angeles County has in the past instituted some of the strictest public health policies in the nation to combat the pandemic. Last January, this prompted college football's Rose Bowl to be moved from Pasadena to Arlington, Texas, although this year's Rose Bowl was in Pasadena as usual.
"We plan on playing Super Bowl LVI as scheduled at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on Sunday, February 13," NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy told journalists.
"As part of our standard contingency planning process that we conduct for all regular and postseason games, we have contacted several clubs to inquire about stadium availability in the event we cannot play the Super Bowl as scheduled due to weather-related issues or unforeseen circumstances," he said. Dallas Cowboys' AT&T Stadium is reported to be one of the stadiums lined-up as a possible replacement should the game not go ahead in LA.
"Our planning process for the Super Bowl in Los Angeles is ahead of schedule and we look forward to hosting the Super Bowl there to culminate another fantastic NFL season for our fans and clubs."
McCarthy noted that Sunday will mark the 20th game at the stadium this season with no attendance limits.