Paulista will have a public limit of 70% and will require vaccination, says government

The government of São Paulo determined that the Campeonato Paulista, which is scheduled to start on January 23, has an audience limited to 70% in the stadiums and requires proof of vaccination from fans. The measure aims to stop the new wave of coronavirus, driven by the omicron variant, and also the influenza epidemic.

The decision was suggested by the State Contingency Center and announced by Governor João Doria (PSDB) this Wednesday (12).

“This applies from January 23, with the return of the São Paulo football championship. Copinha, although it has good repercussion, has a small audience, so there is no need to establish a restriction”, said Doria, referring to the Cup. São Paulo de juniors, in progress — however, the final of the tournament takes place on the 25th and, therefore, must follow the new rules.

The announcement was accompanied by a recommendation that municipalities adopt the same measures for events with agglomeration, such as musical concerts and other sports disputes. But, in these cases, it is up to the municipal administrations to adopt the restrictions or not.

“In the case of football, it is up to the state government, it is not a municipal decision. Therefore, it is a determination and must be obeyed by the federations”, stressed Doria.

“All events should require proof of vaccine, if possible PCR testing. […] Depending on the epidemiological situation of the municipality, this percentage [de restrição] can be changed to more”, said the executive coordinator of the state scientific committee, João Gabbardo.

Sought after, the FPF (Paulista Football Federation), responsible for Paulista, did not take a position until the publication of this text.

Restrictions on audiences in football stadiums in the state of São Paulo had ended in November last year, when the government started to allow matches to be played with 100% of the stands occupied.

On Tuesday (11), the cities of ABC Paulista, through the Consortium Intermunicipal ABC, had already asked the government to increase public restrictions for games in the Copa São Paulo and Campeonato Paulista.

Also on Tuesday, managers of clubs in São Paulo were on alert for the possibility of new restrictions on football.

The new wave of coronavirus is not just in the state of São Paulo. The increase in the number of hospitalizations and, above all, in the number of new cases is registered after the arrival of the ômicron variant in the country and also after the holiday season.

Added to this scenario is the influenza epidemic, which has increased the demand for care in hospitals for people with the flu.

The City of São Paulo estimates that 80% of cases of coronavirus infection in the city are already contagious by the ômicron. In the state, hospitalizations for Covid-19 in ICU grew 70% in the last seven days.

For Wallace Casaca, professor of mathematics and computing at Unesp and one of the coordinators of InfoTracker, the increases in hospitalizations in ICU and infirmary beds across the state are already widespread, and the speed with which new patients need hospitalization is worrying.

According to the researcher, the high vaccination coverage throughout the state causes the number of deaths to be lower, but the pressure on the health system remains the same. “Unfortunately, this is the scenario in the state of São Paulo today. And, if nothing is done, it may be that many of these cases lead to pressure on health services,” he said.