On the eve of the Super Bowl weekend, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell wrote to President Biden to tell him that each of the league’s 32 teams “will make its stadium available for mass vaccination from the general public”.
Driving the news: Goodell wrote in the letter, dated Thursday, that this can be done quickly “because many of our clubs have previously offered their facilities as COVID test centers, as well as election venues in the past few months”.
Why it matters: This continues an NFL effort to use its unique footprint to help the United States recover from the pandemic.
- The fact that a Super Bowl is being played in the middle of the pandemic reflects the NFL’s success in navigating obstacles that previously threatened to limit or end the season.
- Surprisingly, the league played all 256 games of the regular season without cancellations, reports the AP.
- The NFL is treating 7,500 vaccinated health workers from across the country to seats in the pandemic-reduced crowd at Sunday’s game in Tampa.
Goodell’s letter says the NFL is “committed to doing our part to ensure that vaccines are as widely accessible as possible in our communities”.
- Clubs will make the stadiums available “in coordination with local, state and federal health authorities”.
Read the full letter via DocumentCloud.