No fans allowed for Charlotte 49ers’ football home opener against Georgia State

The Charlotte 49ers’ football home opener scheduled for Sept. 26 against Georgia State at Richardson Stadium will be played without fans due to coronavirus concerns, UNC Charlotte announced Sunday.

The announcement was made in conjunction with the school’s decision to postpone in-classroom education until Oct. 1. Season ticket packages, according to a release, are also “no longer viable.”

“We appreciate everyone’s patience as we navigate these unprecedented and complicated circumstances,” 49ers Athletics Director Mike Hill said in a statement. “Our staff has worked tirelessly developing multiple seating models to accommodate our amazing fans. However, we must be responsive to the condition of our community, and the reality is that until we see significant improvement, we cannot host fans. We remain hopeful that we will be able to offer single-game tickets for games later this season should the situation allow.”

There was no word on whether the 49ers’ three other home games — Oct. 17 against Florida International, Oct. 24 against Texas-El Paso and Nov. 28 against Western Kentucky — would be played with or without fans.

With only four home games on the schedule now and the home opener without fans, season ticket packages have been canceled by the 49ers. If limited attendance is allowed at any of the remaining games, tickets will be available on a single-game basis, with priority given to UNC Charlotte students and season ticket-holders.

Season ticket holders have three options: a complete refund; a tax deductible donation of some or all of the balance of the funds to 49ers athletics; or rolling over funds for the 2021 season.

The 49ers have two road games scheduled before the Georgia State game — at Appalachian State on Sept. 12 and at North Carolina on Sept. 19. App State hasn’t made an announcement yet on an attendance policy. UNC athletics director Bubba Cunningham said in July that games in Kenan Stadium will have limited attendance, although nothing specific has been announced.

Conference USA announced earlier this week that all fall team sports — volleyball and men’s and women’s soccer — will be postponed until the spring. Conference football games are still on (although Old Dominion has called off all fall sports), and each team is allowed to play up to four nonconference games.

This story was originally published August 23, 2020 at 12:23 PM.