The Latest: Appalachian State to open sports with no fans

Updated Sep. 1, 2020 8:50 p.m. ET

Associated Press

The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:

___

Appalachian State athletics director Doug Gillin says the school will open the football and fall sports seasons without fans at home competitions.

Gillin announced the decision in an open letter to fans Tuesday night, saying it would last through “at least” the end of September.

The Mountaineers host Charlotte in football on Sept. 12 and also have a home game with Campbell on Sept. 26.

The list of sports impacted by the decision also includes cross country, women’s soccer and volleyball.

Gillin said the school hopes to have fans at events in October.

___

The New Orleans Saints’ chances of welcoming fans to their second home game against Green Bay on Sept. 27 improved after Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said Tuesday that he's provided conditional approval from the state.

However, the city also must approve the Saints’ plan to host fans in the Superdome in Week 3 of the NFL season.

The club already has announced that no fans will be admitted to New Orleans’ home opener Sept. 13 against Tampa Bay.

Edwards said the New Orleans area now has the lowest percentage of coronavirus tests returning positive of nearly any part of the state, “so that has an awful lot to do with” his approval of allowing some fans into the Superdome by the end of the month. He cautioned, though, that any decision was tentative.

The Superdome holds about 72,000 fans, but because of the coronavirus pandemic, attendance will be limited to a fraction of that. The Saints have not released an estimate of the number of fans they hope to allow into the dome in Week 3.

___

Virginia Tech and the town of Blacksburg say tailgating will be prohibited in the fall in university- and town-owned parking areas.

The joint announcement was made Tuesday and applies to all fall athletic events at Virginia Tech.

The school says it will monitor all parking lots on game days and that university police will notify fans setting up tailgates that it is prohibited.

Town officials say they will enforce ordinances put in place in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Those measures restrict gatherings of people, especially events in which participants are not wearing a mask or physically distant from others.

___

Wake Forest says it will open the football and fall sports season with no fans in attendance at home competitions because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The school announced the decision Tuesday.

The football team hosts No. 1 Clemson on Sept. 12 in its only home game for the month of September. The Demon Deacons travel to North Carolina State on Sept. 19, then face No. 10 Notre Dame in Charlotte on Sept. 26 before having an open week.

The school said no tailgating will be permitted in the areas and parking lots surrounding Truist Field when the Tigers visit.

Other sports impacted include men’s and women’s soccer, field hockey and volleyball through the month of September.

The school said it would only sell individual-game tickets if fans are allowed to attend fall sporting events at a later date.

Fellow instate Atlantic Coast Conference schools Duke, North Carolina and N.C. State have all said they will open the fall sports season without fans in attendance at home events.

___

More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports