The FA have updated their Covid guidance to the three National Leagues. This has been done in the light of the Omicron variant.
This from the FA:
This guidance has been updated on December 17th 2021 to reflect the Government’s move to Plan B of the Covid Autumn/Winter Plan, in response to the risks of the Omicron variant.
It is important that all participants follow FA and Government guidance, including measures on mask wearing and hygiene, to minimise the risk of transmission. The changes to restrictions at this
time are summarised below.
• From Friday 10th December, face coverings will be legally required in most public indoor venues.
All participants must follow the instructions of facility providers on the wearing of face coverings.
Face coverings are not required when playing football.
• From Tuesday 14th December, fully-vaccinated contacts of someone with Covid-19 should take rapid lateral flow tests every day for seven days. If you test positive or develop symptoms, you need to self-isolate for 10 days.
– You can find more information on ordering free packs of lateral flow tests here.
– Government guidance on staying at home for households with possible or confirmed Covid-19 is here.
• From Wednesday 15th December, certain businesses and some events are required by law to check the Covid status of workers and customers, using the NHS Covid Pass. This includes unseated indoor events with 500 or more attendees, unseated outdoor events with 4,000 or more attendees and any event with 10,000 or more attendees. To enter or work in these venues and events, customers and workers must provide proof that they are fully vaccinated or have tested
negative in the last 48 hours (unless they are exempt from these requirements).
• All international arrivals to take a Day 2 PCR test and self-isolate until they receive a negative test. This means you cannot play football until you receive a negative test or complete your isolation period.
The FA continues to work closely with Government to monitor the ongoing impact of Covid-19 and will update this document with any further changes, as and when necessary.
DETAILED GUIDANCE FOR
NATIONAL LEAGUE SYSTEM FOOTBALL
ADAPTATIONS TO THE GAME
In previous FA guidance, we set out the required adaptations
to the playing of the game, to align to the Government’s
team sports framework. This included not prolonging
elements of the game where players will be in close
proximity (i.e. free kicks and corners) and avoiding team
huddles and handshakes (for example).
These adaptations are no longer required by the
Government and so have been removed from this guidance.
However, clubs, leagues and all participants should remain
vigilant and, for example, be respectful of individuals/teams
who may not wish to shake hands before games.
CLOSE CONTACT AND SELF-ISOLATION
The Government has updated its guidance on self
isolation. Covid-19 infection rates are very high and
the Omicron variant is spreading rapidly. It is important
that we all take steps to reduce the spread of Covid-19
infection in the community to save lives and protect
the NHS.
If you have Covid-19 symptoms you should stay at home
and self-isolate immediately. You should arrange to have
a PCR test as soon as possible. If this PCR test result is
positive, you must continue to self-isolate.
If you do not have Covid-19 symptoms, but you have
a positive PCR test result, you must stay at home and
self-isolate.
If you live in the same household as someone with
Covid-19 you are at significantly higher risk of becoming
infected yourself.
If you have been vaccinated with a Covid-19 vaccine, you
are less likely to become severely ill if you catch Covid-19.
You are also less likely to spread Covid-19 to other people,
but it is still possible for this to happen. Therefore:
• if you are aged 18 years 6 months or over and you
are not fully vaccinated*, and you live in the same
household as someone with Covid-19 , you are legally
required to stay at home and self-isolate
• if you are fully vaccinated or aged under 18 years
and 6 months, and you live in the same household as
someone with Covid-19, you are not legally required
to self-isolate. However, you are strongly advised to
take an LFD test every day for seven days, and to self-
isolate if any of these test results is positive
*You are fully vaccinated 14 days after having received
two doses of an approved vaccine (such as Pfizer/
BioNTech, AstraZeneca or Moderna/Spikevax) or one
dose of the single-dose Janssen vaccine.
MASKS AND SOCIAL DISTANCING
From Friday 10th December, face coverings will be legally
required in most public indoor venues, unless you are
exempt. Please follow the rules laid out by facility providers
on face coverings, including when entering, exiting and
moving around a facility.
Government advice is that the use of masks reduce risks
to people, both yourselves and those around you. Please
note you do not need to wear a mask when playing football,
including indoors.
CAPACITY
All businesses and facilities will be able to open, with no caps
on capacity (indoors or outdoors).
QR CODES
While there is no legal requirement for use of QR codes,
Government is encouraging businesses and facilities to
continue using these.
CHANGING ROOMS AND TEAM MEETINGS
Changing rooms can be used. However, participants should
minimise use of changing facilities where possible to avoid
prolonged contact with people in a crowded space.
Clubs and facilities may also wish to consider taking precautions
to avoid close contact, for example, asking participants to
socially distance, wear masks during team meetings and ensure
thorough ventilation.
SPECTATORS
There are no limits on spectators for indoor or outdoor
events. However, please note that venues staging unseated
indoor events with 500 or more attendees, unseated
outdoor events with 4,000 or more attendees and any event
Covid pass of spectators.
To enter or work in these venues and events, spectators and
workers must provide proof that they are fully vaccinated
or have tested negative in the last 48 hours (unless they are
exempt from these requirements).
Please also refer to Government guidance on how to best
manage crowds, particularly for bigger events.
HOSPITALITY
All outdoor and indoor hospitality are allowed to open without
restrictions on capacity limits or how people order food and
drink, however guidance on face coverings and hygiene should
be followed.
KEEPING YOUR CLUBHOUSE AND EQUIPMENT CLEAN
Keeping your clubhouse clean will reduce the risk of passing
the infection onto other people. To achieve this, your cleaning
procedures should be thorough and rigorous. A cleaning
schedule could include:
• Daily cleaning throughout the clubhouse and facility;
• Identifying high-contact touch points for more
regular cleaning (e.g. door handles, grab rails,
vending machines);
• Frequent cleaning of work areas and equipment
between use;
• Cleaning of shared training equipment after each
individual use;
• Having waste facilities and more frequent rubbish
collection;
• Removing any non-essential items that may be difficult
to clean.
The FA is working with its recently-appointed official hygiene
partner, Dettol, to the grassroots game.
LATERAL FLOW TESTS
From Tuesday 14th December, fully-vaccinated contacts of
someone with Covid-19 should take rapid lateral flow tests
every day for seven days. If you test positive or develop
symptoms, you need to self-isolate for 10 days.
• You can find more information on ordering free packs of
lateral flow tests here.
• Government guidance on staying at home for
households with possible or confirmed
Covid-19 is here.
FIRST AID
All participants should ensure they have read the updated FA
guidance on First Aid.
TRAVEL
All participants may travel to games with no restrictions in
place for domestic travel. Participants should be aware that
travelling in cars is now permitted, however this does mean
that they will likely be in close contact and should manage
any risks linked to this. Any international travel should be
in line with Government advice. Players and clubs should
consider how they can reduce the likelihood of close contact
occurring.
INSPECTING THE EXISTING CONDITION OF YOUR FACILITY
If parts of your facility have not been used for some time, a
thorough building inspection and walk-round will allow you
to identify any issues and damage. This will help you plan
what work needs to be carried out and should include water
quality (e.g. for Legionella and other contaminates), drains, gas
services, ventilation, alarms/safety systems and pest control.
FINAL CONSIDERATIONS
The guidance you are reading is FOR ALL – players, coaches,
club officials, club welfare officers, match officials, league
officials, first-aiders, volunteers, parents/carers, facility
providers and spectators.
Clubs and facility providers should update their risk
assessment regularly and also update their medical
emergency action plan around player care, as well as strictly
following the first-aid guidance document published by The
FA, without exception. This is both to protect players and any
club member who is trying to aid the player if an emergency
arises.