ACROSS EUROPE, THE sport administrators’ wheels are turning a little quicker with the scent of competition resumption about.
German football’s move towards restarting the Bundesliga this month has them in pole position to kick-off top-flight football again and seemingly increased the need for countries with higher Coronavirus death rates to find a solution of their own.
Spain, which has the highest number of confirmed cases in Europe, is targetting a mid-June return behind closed doors for La Liga. The UK has the second-highest death rate on the continent and the Premier League is attempting to convince clubs to agree to play play matches behind closed doors at neutral venues. France moved to abandon Ligue 1 and declare PSG champions.
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In Italy, the epicenter of the pandemic in Europe, sports minister Vincenzo Spadafora yesterday said it was too early to discuss the return of Serie A.
Individual training will be permitted again in Italy this week, though team training not be sanctioned until 18 May at the earliest.
“I read strange things around but nothing has changed,” said the minister, “in terms of the resumption of the championship – for now we don’t talk about it.”
Chairman of England’s FA Greg Clarke today admitted he can’t foresee fans at football league matches ‘any time soon’, a reality that may linger on into the 2020/21 season.
“The reality is that we just don’t know how things are going to pan out,” Clark said in an open letter to FA council.
“But with social distancing in place for some time to come we do face substantial changes to the whole football ecosystem.
“For example it’s hard to foresee crowds of fans – who are the lifeblood of the game – returning to matches any time soon.”
The chairman also advised that a budget reduction of £75 million and warned that ‘a worst case scenario’ would keep the reduced budget in place for four years – a state of play that would affect ‘projects that we all value.’
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Too soon to talk about Serie A, FA doesn't expect fans at matches 'any time soon'
ACROSS EUROPE, THE sport administrators’ wheels are turning a little quicker with the scent of competition resumption about.
German football’s move towards restarting the Bundesliga this month has them in pole position to kick-off top-flight football again and seemingly increased the need for countries with higher Coronavirus death rates to find a solution of their own.
Spain, which has the highest number of confirmed cases in Europe, is targetting a mid-June return behind closed doors for La Liga. The UK has the second-highest death rate on the continent and the Premier League is attempting to convince clubs to agree to play play matches behind closed doors at neutral venues. France moved to abandon Ligue 1 and declare PSG champions.
In Italy, the epicenter of the pandemic in Europe, sports minister Vincenzo Spadafora yesterday said it was too early to discuss the return of Serie A.
Individual training will be permitted again in Italy this week, though team training not be sanctioned until 18 May at the earliest.
“I read strange things around but nothing has changed,” said the minister, “in terms of the resumption of the championship – for now we don’t talk about it.”
Chairman of England’s FA Greg Clarke today admitted he can’t foresee fans at football league matches ‘any time soon’, a reality that may linger on into the 2020/21 season.
“The reality is that we just don’t know how things are going to pan out,” Clark said in an open letter to FA council.
“But with social distancing in place for some time to come we do face substantial changes to the whole football ecosystem.
“For example it’s hard to foresee crowds of fans – who are the lifeblood of the game – returning to matches any time soon.”
The chairman also advised that a budget reduction of £75 million and warned that ‘a worst case scenario’ would keep the reduced budget in place for four years – a state of play that would affect ‘projects that we all value.’
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Bundesliga Serie A Covid-19 Football