The J. League announced Monday it will allow entry to the Levain Cup final at Saitama Stadium for up to 10,000 additional spectators who can provide either proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative test result for the virus.
The plan for a maximum 20,000 fans at the Oct. 30 cup final is part of a government study to gauge how smoothly vaccination or infection status can be checked at sports stadiums and other venues aiming to ease entry restrictions.
The government has adopted an entry limit of 10,000 at stadiums with a capacity of 20,000 or greater for one month following the lifting of the coronavirus state of emergency covering Tokyo and other parts of Japan on Friday.
J. League chairman Mitsuru Murai discussed plans for the certification system in an online news conference following a meeting of the league's executive committee.
"We want to try increasing spectator numbers with the proper measures in place," Murai said.
The J. League will test the system by allocating an extra 1,800 tickets for eligible fans to attend the Levain Cup semifinal first-leg match between Nagoya Grampus and FC Tokyo at Toyota Stadium on Wednesday.
It will also run trials at five J. League first-division matches in October.