Winnipeg Jets games to go ahead at full capacity, attendees must be fully vaccinated
First pre-season game scheduled for Sept. 26
It's a moment many hockey fans have been waiting for: the return of in-person Winnipeg Jets games.
True North Sports and Entertainment, the company that owns the Jets, says concerts and sporting events at its two venues in Winnipeg — the Canada Life Centre and Burton Cummings Theatre — will go ahead this fall, but only those fully vaccinated will be allowed to attend.
The company says all employees, event staff, and guests will have to provide proof they've had two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine in order to work at or attend events.
In a news release Wednesday, the company said the majority of its season ticket holders have told them the vaccination requirement is important to them.
The first pre-season home game for the Winnipeg Jets is set for Sept. 26, followed by regular season games on Oct. 21.
Attendees will need to wear a mask, says an FAQ on the Canada Life Centre website.
Manitoba's current public health orders, which came into effect on Aug. 7, allow sporting events to be held at full capacity but attendees have to show proof of vaccination.
Concert halls are also allowed to operate at full capacity with the same rule about vaccination.
Some fully vaccinated health-care workers were able to attend a Winnipeg Jets home game this spring. Aside from that, the 16,000-seat Canada Life Centre — until recently called Bell MTS Place — has been mostly empty for the last year and a half due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Other Manitoba sports teams, including the CFL's Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the American Association of Professional Baseball's Winnipeg Goldeyes, have recently welcomed vaccinated fans back into stands.
Manitoba is issuing vaccination cards to people with two doses of an approved COVID-19 vaccine as proof of their vaccination status.