The University of Alabama has set another record.
On Saturday, the Crimson Tide hosted more than 47,000 for the football program’s spring game.
Via Chris Cwik of Yahoo Sports, that’s the biggest crowd for an American sporting event since the pandemic started last year. It passes the 38,000-plus that baseball’s Texas Rangers hosted for their home opener earlier this month.
Bryant-Denny Stadium holds more than 100,000, and Alabama decided to allow 50-percent capacity for the game. The actual attendance fell short of that amount, and the school did not call the game a sellout.
It’s the latest sign that things are moving back toward normal. Regardless of whether the pandemic is ending or whether enough people are getting the vaccination or whatever, the push to get past the pandemic will fuel efforts to have more and more people present for sporting events. The permissible numbers will vary from state to state. Some will allow more. Some will allow less. Some stadiums will be full. Some will be a 25-percent capacity or maybe less.
Regardless, that’s where it’s heading -- especially with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell saying the league expects to have full stadiums in 2021. Hopefully, people have learned over the course of the past year how to keep themselves and those around them safe.