By Canadian Press

Montreal Impact plan to have small crowd at next week’s home game

Aug 20, 2020 | 11:42 AM

MONTREAL — The Montreal Impact say they will have some fans at their first Major League Soccer home game during the COVID-19 pandemic next week.

The club says a maximum of 250 people will be allowed in 20,081-seat Stade Saputo when the Impact face the Vancouver Whitecaps next Tuesday. The crowd of 250 is the maximum allowed under Quebec public health rules.

The Impact will be the first Canadian MLS team to have fans in the stadium during the pandemic.

Toronto FC is playing two games with no fans this week. The Vancouver Whitecaps say they will have no fans for their three home games in September.

The three Canadian teams are only playing each other for the next month because of border restrictions.

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The Impact say club members will have first access to tickets, which start at $49.

“We are very happy to welcome fans for the resumption of the season at Stade Saputo. We can’t wait to see supporters at the stadium,” Impact president and CEO Kevin Gilmore said in a statement. “We would have liked to return to the stadium with full capacity, but the persisting situation has dictated otherwise.

“Taking that into consideration while also consulting public authorities, we have made a commitment to being one of the safest forms of entertainment in Montreal, because we want our supporters to feel comfortable being here.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on August 20, 2020.

The Canadian Press