Washington State's College, Pro Teams to Require Fans Show Proof of COVID-19 Vaccination or Negative Test

Washington and Washington State announced the decision in conjunction with the professional sports teams on Tuesday.

University of Washington and Washington State will require fans 12 years of age and older to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours of games and athletic events.

WSU and UW announced the mandate on Tuesday, joining the professional teams such as the Seahawks, Sounders and Kraken, in implementing a vaccination requirement to attend home games. 

The Seahawks will begin enforcing their vaccine mandate on Sept. 19 when Seattle plays its home opener against the Titans.

The Cougars' vaccine mandate for fans attending events at Gesa Field will begin on Oct. 9 when WSU hosts Oregon State. The program will also require fans to wear masks at all times unless actively eating or drinking, regardless of their vaccination status. 

The Huskies' policy begins on Sept. 18, when the team plays Arkansas State. UW will also host a pop-up vaccine site on the day of the game for fans who have not been vaccinated.

The joint agreement of the two universities comes nearly three weeks after Washington Gov. Jay Inslee (D.) announced COVID-19 vaccination requirements for workers in the state's K-12 schools, colleges and universities. 

WSU football coach Nick Rolovich did not attend Pac-12 media day in person after initially declining to receive the vaccine. He later indicated he planned to follow the state's vaccine mandate, though he hasn't explicitly said that he received the vaccine. 

"I think we've talked about that a bunch," Rolovich said earlier this week, according to The Spokesman-Review. "My thought process hasn't changed and I'm not gonna address some of those personal deals in public."