On Friday, July 17th, the Football Association revealed what Freedom Day would mean for our national game. As with the rest of society, many of the social distancing and capacity limits non-league Clubs have been managing during the pandemic will be removed from today, July 19th. However, the FA’s message to the football family was clear: “It is imperative that clubs still continually risk assess how to ensure players are reducing or preventing close contact scenarios, to manage the risk of isolation causing matches in National League System Leagues and FA competitions being postponed.”

For fans, its hard to know what this means. The one meter plus rule has been removed, face coverings are no longer required by law, there are no capacity limits for spectators and hospitality is permitted without restrictions – so clubhouses can open as before, with fans ordering at the bar. Indeed, clubs can continue to use test and trace QR codes, but these are no longer mandated to do so, a welcome relief to the hundreds of thousands contacted during the current Pingdemic.

Yet football’s Freedom Day is far from free for the players, coaches and club officials charged with getting games on. Pre-season friendly postponements have been on the rise, as the number of cases surges, particularly amongst the unvaccinated.

How do the FA propose to handle this when the season starts? The guidance is clear that: “If a player tests positive on a team there is not a need for the other players to self-isolate (or a game to be postponed), unless they were in close contact, have been contacted by Test and Trace, they have developed symptoms or tested positive themselves”.

In practise, this means that a player testing positive shouldn’t lead to a postponement. However, what is less clear is what happens if other players are contacted by Test and Trace. If they’ve developed symptoms or tested positive, then clearly they need to isolate, but how many players does this need to effect in order to bring a fixture into question?

Needless to say, the FA have made no mention of that. They have suggested that clubs implement a testing policy for players and staff 48 hours prior to any fixture, but again there is no mention in the guidance as to what a cluster of positive tests might mean, making this somebody else’s problem. But is it the clubs’ problem or the league’s? Ultimately, it’s the individuals problem, because any player, coach or volunteer testing positive will need to isolate for ten days. In that scenario, football is the least of their problems, as that means no social mixing, no visits to the pub or supermarket and no going to work.

Whilst the rules around self-isolation will change for the fully vaccinated, from August 16th, an understanding of what constitutes a close contact with a Covid carrier is critical to non-league football navigating its way through this next phase of the pandemic. The Western League season starts on July 31st and there are plenty of people in their twenties who haven’t had their first jab, let alone their second.

We know that playing and training don’t constitute a close contact, but changing rooms, clubhouses, huddles and handshakes are all a problem, regardless of the legal implications of Freedom Day. Face-to-face contact under one metre for any length of time, being within one metre of each other for one minute, being within two metres of each other for more than 15 minutes in total in one day and travelling in the same vehicle, all constitute a close contact. In practise, a return to the old normal still feels some way away.

The FA have asked clubs to “carry out a risk assessment and record the procedures and checks put in place. It’s essential everyone is clear about the restrictions and works together to manage social distancing, strict hand hygiene and the other protocols”, set out in their guidance document. However, the guidance is just that. It is “for general information only and does not constitute legal advice, nor it is a replacement for such, nor does it replace any Government or PHE advice; nor does it provide any specific commentary or advice on health-related issues”. What is perhaps more alarming is the reference to “independent legal advice should be sought, as required and depending on your, or relevant circumstances”.

Whilst this last statement, found in the Disclaimer section of the guidance document, can be seen as a rather belt and braces approach to managing the implications of the pandemic, its scant consolation to those volunteers who fear having to put their hands in their own pocket, should they wish to seek the sureties the game’s Governing body suggests that they might. Whilst the FA has a “recently-appointed official hygiene partner” in Dettol, it’s a shame it can’t offer clubs a similar facility for legal or medical advice.

As with nearly every issue today, Covid splits opinions between those who’d remove all restrictions tomorrow and those who live in fear of catching the virus every time they leave their house. Non-league football clubs now need to manage all restrictions, whether they wish us to wear a mask, check into a clubhouse with our Covid app, whether we order from the bar or a table. But looking at the small print we can see that players and managers need to be measured with both a clock and ruler. Playing the game is fine, but team talks, time in the changing room and even the trip to the game could lead to ten days in isolation, not to mention fixtures completed with a skeleton squad.

Marcus Brody