Council officials have reportedly told Aberdeen FC to address issues around queuing, social distancing and stewarding after fans were spotted hugging and not wearing masks on their return to Pittodrie.
The Dons welcomed more than 5,000 spectators for last week’s Europa Conference League match against Swedish outfit BK Hacken – the first time supporters had attended a game other than a test event for more than a year.
Permission for a crowd of 5,665 was granted subject to a number of conditions, including supporters taking Covid-19 tests before attending, wearing masks and social distancing throughout, with council officers monitoring the event.
An application for the same number of fans to attend this weekend’s league opener will be heard by the council’s licensing sub-committee this afternoon, with a decision expected shortly after 3pm.
Club ‘largely compliant’
The application will be heard in private, but it is understood council officers have raised a number of issues in the wake of the Hacken encounter.
They found that the club and those attending largely complied with the regulations in place.
And a Dons spokeswoman told us that the return of the Red Army went “exceptionally well”, while stressing that efforts were already being made to deal with any “minor issues”.
But some problems were identified by the local authority – mostly relating to ongoing coronavirus rules.
Large queues formed both outside the ground and at the toilets, and officers highlighted concerns over a lack of social distancing, while issues were identified with the e-ticketing system in place.
Fans were also seen not wearing face coverings, while a large group in the Merkland Stand are reported to have disregarded the seating plan which was a mixture of single seats or groups of two, three and four with gaps between them.
Supporters seen hugging and smoking
Some were also spotted smoking and hugging inside the stadium, while at the end of the match stewards were reportedly unsure which sections of the ground were to leave first.
Council officers are now understood to have asked the club to implement extra stewarding and improve its performance ahead of Sunday’s match.
The Dons spokeswoman said the club had already taken steps to address the issues raised by council officers.
“Overall, the return of fans last week went exceptionally well given all the additional measures we had to put in place,” she said.
“There were minor issues which we have addressed in our latest application for the Dundee United game.
“The sooner we get approval on this, the more time we will have to deal with the complexities around ticketing and to ensure our supporters have enough time to plan their arrangements.”