Germany slashes sports attendance to maximum 15,000

BERLIN (AP) — German politicians have agreed to slash the maximum attendance at outdoor sports events to 15,000 people. Some states still plan to have empty stadiums. Rising infection rates in recent weeks and the emergence of the new omicron variant of the coronavirus caused concern ahead of the talks between the state and federal leaders. The decision to play a Bundesliga soccer game in Cologne last week in front of a crowd of 50,000 provoked particular ire ahead of plans for 67,000 to attend Borussia Dortmund’s game against Bayern Munich this Saturday. That game will likely be played in front of a much smaller crowd.