New Zealand is ready, the United States is not.
While United States sports leagues and organizations struggle to get their product back on the shelves to sell to the public during the COVID-19 pandemic, New Zealand could open the doors for customers to watch games in stadiums and arenas starting on June 8th. New Zealand apparently has contained the spread of COVID-19 and has gotten to the point that the county could lift limits on mass gatherings which would allow fans to watch rugby and go to concerts. United States sports leagues and organizations are not ready to put their product before fans in stadiums and arenas. The National Hockey League cannot even figure out what cities could host games and no decision is coming anytime soon on that issue. Major League Soccer has a plan going ahead with a tournament that will be played in the Orlando, Florida area on the grounds of Walt Disney World. The NFL seemingly is on hold.
The United States has not controlled the spread of COVID-19. Some areas are doing better such as the New York City metropolitan region but some areas are seeing more and more cases. If and when American-based leagues start, there will be no spectators watching, NASCAR has become solely a TV program. The PGA is starting up on June 11th and will be strictly TV programming with no customers on the courses. But the PGA’s planned return to the course has hit a reef. A scheduled stop in the Quad Cities Illinois-Iowa region in Silvis, Illinois which was supposed to start on July 9th was canceled because of COVID-19. The PGA will play a tournament in a Columbus, Ohio to replace the Illinois stop. Some states are ready to open stadiums for fans to attend events. The Texas and Missouri governors want fans in the stands at outdoor stadiums. American sports leagues are still fighting COVID-19.
