The Super Bowl is just 10 days away and health officials in Los Angeles are warning all you sneaky fans plotting a way around the mask mandate ... don't even think about it!!
L.A. County -- where the game will take place on February 13 -- requires everyone over 2 years old at large scale events over 5,000 people, regardless of vaccination status, to mask up ... except when chowing down.
"That doesn't mean buy a bucket of popcorn and eat it for two hours. Actively eating and drinking," a SoFi Stadium executive said according to Fox 5 in San Diego, adding, "We are on to you."
Officials say they're ready to crack down on any of the 70,000+ fans who will ascend on the $5.5 billion stadium next Sunday ... but admitted it's a monumental task.
"It's a challenge. It's a very large building but we are prepared and ready to go," the NFL's head of live events said, continuing ... "We have had two years of experience of planning under COVID and we're extremely confident in the plans that we have in place."
Now, let's be honest ... this is a rule that is virtually impossible to enforce. How do you determine who's eating slow? What's even considered slow? And, how do you deal with the sheer number of people?
In fact, just last weekend during the NFC Championship Game against the 49ers at SoFi Stadium, California governor Gavin Newsom landed in hot water when he was caught taking a photo with Magic Johnson -- without a mask.
Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti also took a maskless photo with the Lakers legend ... but don't worry, he said he was holding his breath (he said this with a straight face).
In addition to requiring the masks, event staff will also require fans to show vaccination proof prior to entering the stadium. The stadium has also been outfitted with hundreds of hand sanitizers.
Bottom line ... Inglewood mayor James Butts Jr. says despite the pandemic, "This is going to be one of the safest, most glamorous Super Bowls in the history of Super Bowls."