Jul 24, 2020 - Sports

NFL and Players Association drop preseason games in final agreement

Jacob Knutson

Illustration of a football player with an NFL tag — Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

The NFL and the NFL Players Association finalized an agreement late on Friday, scheduling the regular season to start on Sept. 10, the New York Times reports.

The state of play: The deal keeps the salary cap at just under $200 million per team for the season, but scraps preseason games to reduce the chances of players contracting the coronavirus.

Both the league and union also agreed to multiple measures to decrease the risk of infection, including daily player testing and outlining who can enter team facilities.

It remains unclear whether fans will be allowed to watch games in-person.

The league announced on Wednesday that fans will be required to wear face coverings at games.
The Giants and Jets this week became the first franchises to announced they will play regular-season games without fans in attendance.

What's next: All players must report to training camp by July 28. But because each team is required to test players and staff members at least twice before allowing them to enter training facilities, official practices will likely begin in early August.

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NFL and Players Association drop preseason games in final agreement

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