Trial openings of Dutch football matches, cinemas and concerts coming in January

In mid-January, test situations of football matches, cinemas and concerts will be set up in order to see how larger audiences can once again become a possibility in the Netherlands.

The industries are looking to experiment with how events can be organised safely with larger groups of people. Fieldlab Events, who arrange business, public, cultural and sports events, initiated the program in collaboration with TNO and TU Delft, reports NOS. Their goal is to collect data on the risk of contamination in various group set-ups.

Performing the trials

The researchers will be carefully monitoring the behaviour of test subjects, the air qualities in the buildings, the use of masks, disinfectants, and the impact on vulnerable groups.

Program team manager of Fieldlab, Pieter Lubberts, said, “We can test in advance and take such security measures, so that we know that visitors to theater performances, cinemas, business seminars or concerts are not infected and meet all safety requirements.”

They plan to perform the first trials with people who have tested negative for corona, and the test subjects will be asked to stay out of contact from vulnerable groups for two weeks after the trials.

Conditions

However, none of the trials will go forward if certain requirements are not met. State Secretary for Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, Mona Keijzer, made it clear that the trials must take place in a region with a risk level of one, and so far none of the Dutch regions have achieved this.

She has also specified that test subjects must be seated, which is why festivals and concerts where people can walk around will not be undergoing any trial tests yet.

However, Keijzer is optimistic about what these trials mean for the country. “This is good for the Dutch population,” she said. “They long to go to the movies or an event together again.”

What do you think of these trials? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.

Feature Image: Ethan Wu/Pexels

Emily Burger
Emily Burger
Emily grew up in South Africa but has also lived in Egypt, the UK, Canada and now the Netherlands. She first came here for her Bachelors in Arts and Culture at Maastricht University and soon fell in love with the land of canals, clogs and cheese. When she's not daydreaming about sci-fi movies or countries yet to explore, you can find her writing for DutchReview.

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