PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Allegheny County says the outdoor gathering limit of 50 still applies to sports, but teams on the sideline and the players on the field each count as individual gatherings.

A joint statement from the county and WPIAL reads in part:

“…Each team is considered a pod. On a sideline, team members as well as coaches and staff, are physically distanced and following the order for universal face coverings. They are spread out and are not exceeding the 50-person gathering limit. On the opposite side of the field, the same is occurring in another pod. While playing the game, there is a third pod established with those players engaged in competition. All activity is occurring with mitigation measures in place for athletes, and established policies to address cases and outbreaks from games, should they occur.”

This means a game could have up to 150 people in three different “pods.”

The county’s new guidelines clear a hurdle for sports in Allegheny, where football would have been difficult. The North Allegheny athletic director told KDKA’s Paul Martino Thursday that there was no way to play high school football with the county’s 50 person limit.

In the rest of the state, outdoor gatherings are capped at 250 people. The county’s stricter limit is in place because of surging coronavirus cases earlier this summer.

Plans from the PIAA and the WPIAL also prohibit spectators for K-12 sports, and put other safety guidelines in place like social distancing when athletes aren’t competing, required mask-wearing for coaches and staff and no sharing equipment.

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Allegheny County issued additional guidance Friday: events must be hosted at a facility where regulation can occur, teams are not allowed to have more than 50 people in close proximity of each other and the total capacity may not exceed the state mandate of 250 people. The county also says along with coaches and staff, athletes on the sidelines should wear masks.

The PIAA is expected to make a decision on fall sports later Friday. The PIAA put plans to play on pause after the governor strongly recommended postponing recreational and scholastic sports until 2021.

Stay with KDKA for the latest on this developing story.