The federal government has announced funding for the repatriation of members who have lost sports clubs in the country due to the corona measures. From up to 100,000 memberships, the annual membership fees are to be taken over by means of a “sports check”, said Vice Chancellor and Sports Minister Werner Kogler (Greens) on Wednesday after the Council of Ministers. The additional federal funds made available for this should amount to 9 million euros.
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When presenting the new grant, Kogler referred to the “#comebackstronger” concept developed together with the umbrella and professional associations. “The package means that we can re-invest properly the moment more opening steps are possible again,” said the minister. At the moment one is confronted with the problem that the memberships are decreasing because fewer activities can be offered by the associations due to the measures.
According to Kogler, the “Sport-Scheck” is to be organized through the existing association structures and the, in his opinion, well-established sports funding in Austria. “Children's and youth sports-related clubs” should be given special support. Kogler promised that other measures were also planned as part of “#comebackstronger”. “This is a first step.” The funds earmarked for this are part of a new aid package worth a total of 430 million euros, which the government presented on Wednesday.
As part of the regional openings, indoor training is again possible for children and young people up to the age of 18 from next Monday in Vorarlberg. In the rest of Germany, this step, announced at the beginning of March, is limited to outdoor activities. “Even in Vorarlberg, not everything happens at once,” emphasized Kogler. There, too, the minimum distance of two meters is to be observed “in the first lap”. Training can be held in a corresponding group size – outdoors a maximum of 20 and indoors a maximum of ten minors – and with compliant forms of exercise.
According to Kogler, nothing will change for the time being in the permitted number of spectators. The Vorarlberg clubs SCR Altach in the Bundesliga or Dornbirn Bulldogs in the ICE Hockey League will not be able to prepare for games in front of an audience in the near future. “As far as Vorarlberg has submitted the concept itself and there is an agreement with the Ministry of Health, the number of viewers is limited to 100,” said the Vice Chancellor. “That probably applies to all events.”
