Japanese Government Eases Event Attendance Cap to 50% Capacity

The Japanese government announced on Thursday that it will lift attendance limits for large-scale events, such as concerts or sports events, from 10,000 attendees to 50% capacity across the country.

The government ended that state of emergency in 19 prefectures on September 30.

The Japanese government instituted an attendance limit of 50% of capacity or 5,000 people (whichever was less) as part of the fourth state of emergency declared in Tokyo due to the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in July, though that state of emergency (as well as a lighter “quasi-emergency” status in some prefectures) was quickly instituted in 26 other prefectures in Japan over the following weeks.