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NFL looks at contingency sites for Super Bowl amid COVID-19

Associated Press

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FILE - This is a general overall interior view of SoFi Stadium as the Los Angeles Rams takes on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 26, 2021, in Inglewood, Calif. A late-season surge in COVID-19 cases had the NFL in 2021 looking a lot like 2020, when the coronavirus led to significant disruptions, postponements and changing protocols. The emerging omicron variant figures to play a role all the way through the playoffs, including the Super Bowl in Los Angeles, where California has always been aggressive with policies to combat the spread of the virus. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong, File)
FILE - Fans watch at the start of an NFL football game inside AT&T Stadium between the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2013, in Arlington, Texas. The NFL, not surprisingly in the midst of a rise in COVID-19 cases, has looked into other potential sites for next month's Super Bowl. AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the home of the Dallas Cowboys, reportedly is one of the facilities contacted.(AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)
FILE - The outside of AT&T Stadium is shown with the end zone doors open before an NFL football game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Cleveland Browns in Arlington, Texas, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2020. The NFL, not surprisingly in the midst of a rise in COVID-19 cases, has looked into other potential sites for next month's Super Bowl. AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the home of the Dallas Cowboys, reportedly is one of the facilities contacted. (AP Photo/Ron Jenkins, File)

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

FILE - This is a general overall interior view of SoFi Stadium as the Los Angeles Rams takes on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 26, 2021, in Inglewood, Calif. A late-season surge in COVID-19 cases had the NFL in 2021 looking a lot like 2020, when the coronavirus led to significant disruptions, postponements and changing protocols. The emerging omicron variant figures to play a role all the way through the playoffs, including the Super Bowl in Los Angeles, where California has always been aggressive with policies to combat the spread of the virus. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong, File)

NEW YORK – The NFL, not surprisingly in the midst of a rise in COVID-19 cases, has looked into other potential sites for next month’s Super Bowl.

That's not unusual because the league does so every year. But with Los Angeles the site for this year's title game, and restrictions increasing for attendance at indoor events, it has become more noteworthy.

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“We plan on playing Super Bowl 56 as scheduled at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on Sunday, Feb. 13,” NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said Wednesday. "As part of our standard contingency planning process that we conduct for all regular and postseason games, we have contacted several clubs to inquire about stadium availability in the event we cannot play the Super Bowl as scheduled due to weather-related issues or unforeseen circumstances.

“Our planning process for the Super Bowl in Los Angeles is ahead of schedule and we look forward to hosting the Super Bowl there to culminate another fantastic NFL season for our fans and clubs.”

AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the home of the Dallas Cowboys, reportedly is one of the facilities contacted. The stadium hosted the Rose Bowl in 2021 when it was switched from Pasadena because of COVID-19 restrictions in California.

California Health and Human Services Agency Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said that it’s not just the Super Bowl that brings people to Los Angeles County, but a week or more of events across the region. He said officials are committed to making sure the events go forward as planned, “that the mitigation strategies that create safety around that event are in place.”

“I know L.A. County is closely in contact with the NFL to make sure that strategies are put in place to ensure that people can enjoy this important event while making sure that we put things in place that allow COVID mitigation to be an important feature of the approach to that game that is just over a month away,” Ghaly said Wednesday.

Also on Wednesday, the Grammy Awards were postponed indefinitely. They were scheduled for Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Jan. 31. Organizers cited health and safety concerns.

The Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium is scheduled for Feb. 13.

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