In a follow up to our earlier report regarding President Donald Trump participating in a conference call with major sports officials, including WWE, ESPN took to Twitter to provide an update.
During the call Trump said he hopes to have fans back in stadiums and arenas by August and September, according to ESPN. It’s currently unclear if medical experts will agree that this is a realistic timeline during the coronavirus pandemic. Trump also said he believes the NFL season should start on time in September.
“They want to get back. They’ve got to get back…. We want to get back soon, very soon,” Trump said of his conversation with pro sports bosses during his new briefing this afternoon. “We have to open our country again.”
At the briefing, Trump would not give an exact date when asked when he anticipates fans returning to arenas, but he did say he thinks it’s going to be sooner rather than later.
Trump reportedly told sports commissioners today that he recognizes “the good work being done by many teams and players” to care for their communities and fan bases while the world deals with the COVID-19 outbreak.
ESPN noted that California Governor Gavin Newsom addressed whether he thinks the NFL season would open in August or September with 80,000 fans. He told reporters today, “I’m not anticipating that happening in this state. It’s interesting, I have a lot of friends that work in Major League Baseball and in the NFL, they’ve been asking me — in fact, a well-known athlete just asked me — a football player — if he expects to come back, I said, ‘I would move very cautiously in that expectation.'”
During Trump’s call, the President reportedly mentioned the idea of the leagues working together to lobby for tax incentives that used to exist for entertainment expenses, such as the ability to deduct for concessions and tickets from taxes. This would be a way for the leagues to jump-start fans’ ability to return to stadiums in a tough economy.
Trump’s call included commissioners and top executives from WWE, UFC, the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, Major League Soccer, WNBA, the PGA Tour, NASCAR, IndyCar, and Breeders’ Cup.
In ESPN story with @AdamSchefter on White House call with pro sports leagues, Trump also raised idea of the leagues working together to lobby for tax credits that once existed to deduct the purchase of tickets and concessions. https://t.co/217N28fqMW
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 4, 2020
More on high-level officials from multiple NFL teams now preparing to conduct the April 23-25 draft virtually, from home, away from their team facilities:https://t.co/JPynxeuX56
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 4, 2020
NEW: The @NBA is contributing 1 million desperately needed surgical masks for New York's essential workers in collaboration with @nyknicks, @BrooklynNets and China's Consul General Huang Ping.
New York thanks you.
We are beyond grateful for this gift of critically needed PPE.
— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) April 4, 2020
More on Donald Trump telling sports commissioners today that he believes the NFL should start on time in September, per @wojespn and me.https://t.co/SrRISWxzAo
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 4, 2020
Donald Trump also told commissioners that he hopes to have fans back in stadiums and arenas by August and September, sources said, though it is currently unclear if medical experts find that to be a realistic timeline amid the current coronavirus pandemic. https://t.co/EFqDryGlTQ
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 4, 2020
In conference call with major league sports commissioners on Saturday, President Donald Trump said he believes the NFL season should start on time in September, sources familiar with the call told @wojespn and me. More on call coming at https://t.co/rDZaVFhcDQ.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 4, 2020
High-level officials from multiple NFL teams are now preparing to do the April 23-25 draft virtually, from home, away from their team facilities, league sources tell ESPN. Awaiting final decision from NFL on an unprecedented draft.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 4, 2020
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