MLS Announces Individual Voluntary Player Workouts To Begin May 6

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Major League Soccer has announced that beginning May 6th MLS clubs will be allowed the opportunity to begin voluntary outdoor individual workouts with its players.

Under the new guidelines, “players may begin to use outdoor team training fields for individual workouts, in compliance with detailed health and safety protocols that were created in consultation with medical and infectious disease experts.  All individual workouts are voluntary and may not be in conflict with local public health official or government policies.”

MLS to begin individual player workouts beginning May 6https://t.co/iKofpJfVu9

— MLS Communications (@MLS_PR) May 1, 2020

“Only allowing outdoor recreation provides the players and club staff members the safest measures of social distancing practice. It provides MLS Clubs with a controlled environment that allows players to return to their facilities in a safe and organized manner.”

Prior to any voluntary player outdoor workouts, the club must adhere to strict guidelines set by MLS. The club’s medical staff will request confirmation of said guidelines from a state infectious disease expert before the league grants each clubs wish of allowing voluntary player workouts.

The health and safety protocols are-

• Restricting training facility access to essential staff only, with specific staff listed in the plan.
• Sanitization and disinfection plans for all training equipment and spaces, including disinfection of any equipment used by players (balls, cones, goals) between every session.
• Completion of a Standard Screening Assessment survey by each player prior to every arrival at the training site, and temperature checks upon arrival at the facility.
• Staggered player and staff arrivals and departures, with designated parking spaces to maintain maximum distance between vehicles.
• Player use of personal protective equipment from the parking lot to the field, and again on return to the parking lot.
• Staff use of the appropriate personal protective equipment throughout training, while also maintaining a minimum distance of 10 feet from players at all times.
• Hand washing and disinfectant stations for required use before and after individual workouts.
• Clubs will have the use of the outdoor fields at their training facility, divided into a maximum of four quadrants per field. A maximum of one player per quadrant may participate per training session with no equipment sharing or playing (passing, shooting) between players.
• An Emergency Action Plan for all COVID-19 related issues.

The league-wide moratorium on small group and full team training remains in place through, and including, Friday, May 15.

Tom Hackett is a Utah and Real Salt Lake Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of the It’s Utah’s World Podcast (Utah Football themed) and The Lion’s Den Podcast (Real Salt Lake themed). Follow him on Twitter: @TomCantHackett.