Timbers, Thorns allowing fans up to 25% capacity starting April 9

It’s official — fans can come back to Providence Park. The Portland Timbers and Portland Thorns FC both announced on Wednesday that they will be allowing fans in Providence Park at up to 25% capacity for home matches. They’ll be able to do it starting on April 9 with the Thorns home match against KC NWSL. The Timbers will first host fans on April 13 in their CCL match against CD Marathon.

“We are sincerely grateful to Governor Brown and the Oregon Health Authority for their hard work and support in getting fans back safely at Providence Park,” said owner and CEO Merritt Paulson in a press release. “As we enter a period of great optimism with falling COVID-19 rates and increased vaccine deployment, the protection of our fans, staff and players remains our top priority and we will diligently follow all public health protocols to ensure our plan is executed safely. It will be a special moment to have our fans back in the stands on April 9 and we hope that on the current trajectory, we will be able to safely increase capacity throughout the summer.”

It’ll be the first time that sports have been open to fans live since March 10, 2020. With the capacity being capped at 25%, that puts the amount of fans at games at about 6,300. There will be more guidelines for health and safety protocols posted later today.

For the full press release, click here.