The Arizona Cardinals are inviting the friends and family of their players to attend Sunday’s game against the Detroit Lions
Back in July, the Arizona Cardinals organization received some scary news. Michael Bidwill, the team’s principal owner and president, was hospitalized with the coronavirus. Thankfully he recovered, but the incident gave Bidwill an up close and personal perspective on how dangerous COVID-19 can be.
Two months have now passed since Bidwill’s bout with the disease, and the Cardinals franchise is on the verge of something extremely important. The club has announced that friends and family of their players will be permitted to attend this Sunday’s matchup with the Detroit Lions. It’s exciting news for an Arizona squad that has performed in front of empty stadiums over the past two weeks.
No more than 750 individuals will be allowed to enter State Farm Stadium this weekend. Family members and friends will be seated in groups of two and four. The Cards are describing their plan for gameday as a test run of sorts.
“This will give us a good chance to test, and we feel good because our players and most of our staff is getting tested every day,” Bidwill said on Friday. “We’ve got all sorts of protocols within the stadium.”
Recently, Arizona has seen a decrease in COVID-19 cases and deaths. The state’s confirmed or suspected cases stood at 521 this past Thursday, which happens to be one of the lowest numbers since April. COVID-19 patients in the intensive=care unit have dwindled to 119, which ranks as the second-lowest number since the pandemic reared it’s ugly head.
“I think overall for our fans, family and friends, it’s going to be a great experience,” remarked Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury. “We’re excited to test those protocols, and Michael (Bidwill) could have easily passed those tickets along to other people, but decided to give them to us.”
Kudos to Bidwill and the Cards for taking this monumental first step. Hopefully, the experiment will be a success, and fans of the team will be extended an invite in the coming weeks. Rest assured that the “Red Sea” will be watching with great interest on Sunday.