LA Mayor: Sporting events could be postponed until 2021

While the Rams and Chargers await and hope for the construction of SoFi Stadium in Inglewood to be completed on time, and as the NFL postpones for as long as possible the postponement of the 2020 season, at a certain points cities, counties, states, and countries could make those decisions and efforts wasted if they so choose to. That could be the case in Los Angeles, as mayor Eric Garcetti noted on a Monday conference call that “large gatherings such as concerts and sporting events may not be approved in the city for at least 1 year,” according to an e-mail reviewed by the LA Times.

A spokesperson with the Los Angeles Fire Department confirmed that this was indeed a “paraphrasing” of “possible scenarios” as Garcetti considers, as all political leaders of all levels around the world must do, how to respond to the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic that has shut down much of daily life and the economy over the last month.

Nearly every sporting league in the world has postponed or cancelled their current and upcoming seasons. The NFL has disrupted much of their offseason already but has no reason at this point to make an announcement indicating the postponement or cancellation of a season that won’t begin Week 1 for almost another five months.

SoFi Stadium is scheduled to open in July with back-to-back Taylor Swift concerts, then beginning as the home of the Chargers and Rams during the next NFL season. But whether it was in SoFi or somewhere else, we can’t say for sure that even if the league, team, and stadium feel they are ready, the city or state may not agree.