Following the Government and EFL announcements yesterday in relation to the return of fans to stadiums, CEO Ian Mather has the following update for Cambridge United supporters.
"Yesterday's announcement was of course the news so many of us have long been waiting for. It is the first step towards having a full and vibrant Abbey Stadium on matchday again. Rest assured the Football Club is mobilising quickly to welcome our phenomenal supporters back as soon as possible.
Like everyone, we still await the clarity that is due to come from Thursday's tier announcement by government to establish exactly when we will be able to open the doors to the Abbey for our fans, and we will give further details as soon as we can.
What I can say for now is that planning is well underway and internal meetings are already happening to plan for a return next week. We are confident that we will have done everything as a Club to be ready as soon as we are given the green light. Given our experience and the learnings from our successful pilot event earlier this year, which Cambridge United were proud to be the frontrunners for, we are as well placed as any Football Club in the country to welcome our fans back safely, with all necessary Covid secure measures in place.
We feel it's important that our supporters know at this stage, that our overall aim in our planning has one very simple factor at the heart of every decision. We want to do everything possible to get as many supporters into the stadium, as is safe to do within set limits. We want to leave no seat or space on the terrace unused.
All of the above though is dependent on both the tier in which Cambridge is placed in on Thursday by government, and as ever for every home fixture, sign off from our local Safety Advisory Group.
On behalf of everyone at Cambridge United, we hope this signifies the beginning of the safe return of our fans to the Abbey. It's been too long!"