Bio-secure bubble
A bio-secure bubble, also known as a bubble,[1] or hub city,[2][3] was a hosting arrangement for sporting events that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic, under which events were held at a centralized site, often behind closed doors, with strict quarantine and safety protocols in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19. A bubble was established for a single sports season, tournament, or for an ongoing series of events, allowing them to still be held and made available to broadcast audiences.
Usage[edit]
Basketball[edit]
Taiwan's Super Basketball League was the first basketball league in the world to move competition into a bubble setting in order to complete the season.[10]
The National Basketball Association was among the first major American sports leagues to suspend play due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[11][12][13] In June 2020, the league's board of governors approved a plan to complete the remainder of the 2019-20 season, including the remaining regular season games and the playoffs, within a centralized bubble at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Orlando, Florida's Walt Disney World.[14] Players were housed in three of Walt Disney World's resorts,[15] and games were held at one of three arenas within the complex (with one, the AdventHealth Arena, designated as the flagship venue to host nationally televised games and the final rounds of the playoffs).[6]
Combat sports[edit]
The mixed martial arts promotion UFC established a bubble known as "Fight Island" to conduct international events, which comprised a quarantine zone on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, and used the du Forum concert venue as its competition site.[16] UFC later returned to Yas Island to hold UFC Fight Night: Holloway vs. Kattar in January 2021; although branded as a Fight Island card, the event was held with limited spectators at the newly opened Etihad Arena instead.[17][18][19]
Cricket[edit]
The July 2020 test series between England and West Indies was conducted as a bubble, with players staying in a hotel on-site.[20] On 16 July 2020 during the morning of the second Test, Jofra Archer was excluded from England's squad after breaching COVID-19 protocols by leaving to his home after the first Test. Archer was fined, and ordered to self-isolate for five days before returning.[21][22][23]
The 2020 Indian Premier League was re-located to bubbles in the United Arab Emirates.[24][25]
The first One Day International (ODI) in England's tour of South Africa on 4 December 2020 was postponed to 6 December after a South African player tested positive for COVID-19; matches were being held in Newlands and Paarl, with players staying at a hotel in Cape Town. The match was called off after two employees of the quarantine hotel tested positive. Two English players were also reported to have unconfirmed cases, after which the second ODI on 7 December was postponed. On 7 December, the remainder of the ODI series was called off.[26][20][27][28]
Curling[edit]
Curling Canada hosted most national championships for the 2020–21 curling season, including the 2021 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, 2021 Tim Hortons Brier, and the World Men's and Women's championships, at a bubble using the Markin MacPhail Centre at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary. All events were held behind closed doors.[29][30]
Soccer[edit]
Major League Soccer conducted an in-season tournament—the MLS is Back Tournament—at a bubble within the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.[5][31]
The 2020 Chinese Super League split its teams between Dalian and Suzhou.[32] The Philippines Football League is noted for hosting its 2020 season in just under two weeks under a bubble with a downsized format, due to financial and logistics issues caused by the pandemic.[33]
Reception[edit]
The use of bubbles by major professional leagues in North America have been considered largely effective; the National Basketball Association[50] and National Hockey League[51] did not record any new cases of COVID-19 within their respective bubbles during the duration of competitions staged there. By contrast, the 2020 regular seasons of Major League Baseball and the NFL—which had teams travelling to individual venues as usual (albeit with MLB realigning its schedule to reduce travel)—were affected by outbreaks among players that led to various postponed games.[52][53] Major League Baseball eventually decided to use a neutral site model for its 2020 postseason in order to reduce the chance of further disruption, with games split between venues in California and Texas beginning with the Division Series round, and the 2020 World Series held at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas. Most games were held behind closed doors, except for the National League Championship Series and World Series in Arlington, which hosted spectators at 25% of the new stadium's capacity.[54][55] There were examples of failed bubbles leading to outbreaks during The Spring League (an American football league's) autumn 2020 season[56] and the winter 2021 season of the National Women's Hockey League.[57]
Concerns have been raised over "bubble fatigue", as players are isolated from their families and the outside world for an extended period of time until the event concludes or they are eliminated.[58][59] IPL player Shikhar Dhawan described the experience as being "almost like Bigg Boss [the Indian version of Big Brother]", and a test of his "mental strength".[60]