Sports Minister Grant Robertson says he hopes to see competitive sport back in "some form" at Covid-19 alert level 2.
The Government yesterday announced that the current level 4 lockdown will be lifted at 11.59pm on April 27, and will stay at Level 3 for at least two weeks before being reviewed on May 11.
At level 3, there is still no competitive sport, with people still being asked to stay home and strict rules on movement still in place.
However, Robertson was hopeful that competitive sport in New Zealand could return when the country does move to level 2 – which, in theory, could see some sports return in three weeks, but will more likely be a few weeks longer to account for safety and pre-season preparations.
"We have work underway right now and I'd like to think in alert level 2 we can look at competitive sports of some form coming back," Robertson told TVNZ.
"But we have to work that through with public health so we have a situation where it's safe for the people involved and the wider community.
"I'm certainly hoping we will see [sports] on our screens before too long."
There won't be fans at stadiums and arenas anytime soon, however, with restrictions on gatherings – 100 people inside and 500 outdoors – being in place at level 2.
Robertson's comments come as the Warriors prepare to fly to Australia to join the resumption of the NRL season, which is planned to restart on May 28.
Last week, the minister expressed scepticism about the NRL's targeted start date of May 28.
Sports Minister Grant Robertson. Photo / Getty
Robertson said he hasn't been involved in any discussion with the NRL but the start date sounded "very ambitious".
"Personally I haven't been involved in any discussions about that," he said. "I believe there may have been some high-level discussions between some people working on behalf of the NRL and Sport New Zealand.
"That sounds like a very ambitious date to me to start a competition up. And no doubt there's a lot to work through on both sides of the Tasman about how that would work.
"Clearly both sides of the Tasman are operating strict quarantine arrangements at the moment and therefore that provides some real limitations on the ability of people to travel and spend time in such situations."
The Warriors will need to arrive in Australia at least two weeks before May 28 in order to serve a 14-day quarantine before the restart of the NRL season.
According to TVNZ, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's office confirmed that the Warriors did not require permission to leave the country, only to land and stay in Australia.
The Warriors have an application before the Australian Government and border security seeking access into the country.
