The Warriors’ ambitious coronavirus testing plan aimed at bringing fans into Chase Center for the upcoming season has been swatted down by San Francisco health officials.
Golden State had submitted a plan to use rapid PCR tests to allow fans into home games at half capacity for the season slated to start Dec. 22.
But as coronavirus cases continue to spike in the Bay Area as well as nationwide, the city rejected the Warriors’ plan in a letter from city health officer Tomás Aragón.
The city may be open to working with the team on a plan to allow fans at 25 percent capacity, Aragón’s letter said, after the city reaches the state’s yellow tier of reopening — which would require an unadjusted case rate of less than 1.0 daily new cases per 100,000 and a test positivity rate less than 2 percent. The city is currently in the red tier, two steps away from yellow, while much of the rest of the state moved into the purple tier this week — the state’s most restrictive.
The Warriors rolled out their plan last week, saying they have been working with UCSF epidemiologist George Rutherford to develop safety guidelines. They said that new rapid PCR tests are much more effective than rapid antigen tests — estimating they are nearly 99 percent accurate.
The plan would have called for fans to maintain some level of social distance and wear masks inside the arena after showing proof of a negative test within the last two days upon entry. But the prospect of allowing 9,000 people to gather in an indoor space — even one with a significant air filtration system — appears to be too risky for the city’s health officials to sign off.
“The Department of Public Health has met with the Warriors and had a good conversation about how to safely bring events back to Chase Center in the future,” said Jeff Cretan, a spokesperson for Mayor London Breed. “We know the Warriors and events at Chase Center are an important part of San Francisco’s economy and our City, and we will continue to work collaboratively with them as we move through the challenging times ahead.”
NBA teams have signaled that they will try to have some level of ticket revenue for the upcoming season, but the Warriors’ estimated $30 million plan was the most ambitious. Other teams have targeted suites as an opportunity to allow fans in small groups, and it is possible the Warriors will do the same.
The Warriors have a strong financial incentive in having spectators at games. The team had expected a consistent revenue stream to help offset the costs of building the $1.4 billion Chase Center. Warriors CEO Joe Lacob estimated the team lost out on more than $50 million last season when the season shut down. Without fans at games this upcoming season, the Warriors could lose another $160 million — an average of $4 million to $5 million per game.
The Warriors said they’d keep working with San Francisco health officials and emphasized that their top priority is the health of fans, employees and players.
“We believe the thorough, detailed and adaptive re-opening plans we’ve been developing over the last eight months will help us accomplish our goal of welcoming our fans and staff back to Chase Center when the time is right,” a team statement said.
