With 4,500 home fans allowed inside the Molineux for this Sunday’s Premier League match against Manchester United, this will be their first time back there since lockdown restrictions began.
To protect fans and players, the club has sent all lucky ticket holders, who were chosen at random through a ticketing ballot, a rapid LFT coronavirus test kit to encourage them to take a test within 48 hours before kick-off. Anyone testing positive ahead of the game should not attend and will receive a full refund.
Wolves head coach, Nuno Espirito Santo, said: “We can’t wait to welcome our fans back to Molineux after 14 months without them – it has been a long time to wait, and it will be a very special moment for all of us.
“The most important thing is that it is a safe environment for everyone to attend, so we hope all our supporters can test themselves before Sunday, with the rapid test kit they have been sent.”
“This is one of the first large scale events to be held in the city since restrictions began,” added John Denley, Wolverhampton’s director of public health. “As we begin to open up again, it’s important we do so safely.
“Across Wolverhampton we have been encouraging residents to make rapid coronavirus testing part of their regular routines, so we are really grateful to the club for sending out test kits directly to ticket holders for Sunday’s big match.
“By making testing as easy as possible, we want everyone to take a test before they come to the match, so we can all be sure that we are doing everything we can to protect ourselves and those around us.”
Fans will also be required to complete a health declaration 72 hours before the match, and anyone not doing so will not be allowed into the stadium.
During the match, on adverts in key locations in the stadium, the club will also be encouraging fans to have their vaccination as soon as they are able to.
Sally Roberts, chief nursing officer, Black Country and West Birmingham CCG and senior responsible officer for the local vaccination programme, said: “I am hugely grateful to Wolverhampton Wanderers for lending their support during the pandemic to promote Covid-19 testing and the successful rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine across the city.
“Spreading the word to keep fans safe is key, and it is this support that has paved the way for introducing fans back into our local stadiums.
“Vaccines are saving lives and are the light out of the darkness, helping us return to things we love safely, not least getting back to watching football the way we know it.
“So I encourage everyone in Wolverhampton to join the pack – and don’t pass, take the shot when you are invited.”
Free rapid LFT testing is available at the Civic Centre, The Hub in Ashmore Park, and the Jamia Masjid Bilal and at the mobile testing unit, which is at New Cross Hospital this week.
Home test kits can also be collected from all of these places, plus from PCR test sites, Wolverhampton and Bilston markets, WV Active leisure centres, Wolverhampton Swimming and Fitness Centre, a number of local schools and from local pharmacies offering the Pharmacy Collect Service https://maps.test-and-trace.nhs.uk
More information on rapid testing, including advice about how to take the test at home, is available at www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/get-tested.
Please note, rapid testing is not available for people with coronavirus symptoms. Anyone with symptoms, including high temperature, a new or continuous cough, or a loss or taste or smell, should book a PCR test at www.nhs.uk/coronavirus or by calling 119.
