Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on association football
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The COVID-19 pandemic has caused disruption to association football (also known as soccer) across the world, mirroring its impact across all sports. Across the world and to varying degrees, leagues and competitions have been cancelled or postponed.
Club football[edit]
By 25 May, 2020 Ýokary Liga,[1][2] Belarusian Premier League and Liga Primera de Nicaragua were the only three known top flight national football leagues not suspended.[3]
Asia[edit]
In China, the 2020 Chinese Super League was postponed as a result of the virus.[4] In Hong Kong, the 2020 Lunar New Year Cup was cancelled on 23 January.[5] Other leagues in Asia were affected, including South Korea's K League 1 and Japan's J1 League.[6][7] The AFC Champions League and AFC Cup was also impacted, a number of group stage and play-off matches being postponed.[8]
According to K League of South Korea announcement, 2020 K League 1 returned on 8 May, changed from original scheduling start from 29 February.[citation needed]
In India, the remaining I-League matches were postponed and the Indian Super League final was played behind closed doors.[9]
Owing to the surge in new Covid-19 cases, the Beijing Municipal Sports Competitions Administration Centre announced on June 15, 2020, the suspension of 2020 CSL season.[10] On 1 July it was announced that the season would start on 25 July.
Europe[edit]
In Europe, various knockout matches in the Champions League and Europa League were played behind closed doors in February and March 2020.[11][12] On 12 March 2020, UEFA announced that the elite qualification round of the men and women's under-17 and under-19 youth international tournaments had been postponed.[13] The following day, UEFA postponed all fixtures for the following week in the Champions League, Europa League and Youth League.[14] On 17 June UEFA announced that the Champions League would resume in Portugal, and the Europa League in Germany, in August, but all rounds would be a single match affiars with the expectations of Europa League rounds of 16 where the first game had already been played.
Many of the domestic European leagues were impacted in February and March 2020. After various fixtures were rescheduled or played behind closed doors, Serie A was postponed on 9 March 2020.[15] On 12 March, La Liga and the Segunda División were suspended for at least two weeks after a Real Madrid basketball player tested positive for the virus, which resulted in Real Madrid's footballers being put in quarantine.[16] The Eredivisie was also suspended (it was officially declared abandoned on 24 April with no champion awarded),[17] while Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga followed suit shortly afterwards (Ligue 1 would eventually end on 27 April after the French Prime Minister ordered all sporting events to be cancelled until 1 September, with Paris Saint-Germain being declared champions).[18][19][20] The Bundesliga eventually returned on 16 May following the suspension of play.
On 10 March, the Premier League match between Manchester City and Arsenal, due to be played the next day, was postponed after a number of Arsenal players made close contact with Olympiacos owner Evangelos Marinakis, who had tested positive for coronavirus, when the two teams had met in the Europa League 13 days earlier.[21] Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta tested positive for the disease, prompting the team's Premier League match against Brighton & Hove Albion for that weekend to also be postponed.[22] As of 13 March, there has been at least one recorded case of the disease affecting a player in the aforementioned leagues; Serie A footballers Daniele Rugani and Manolo Gabbiadini, 2. Bundesliga footballer Timo Hübers, and Premier League footballer Callum Hudson-Odoi.[23][24] Rugani tested positive while being asymptomatic.[25] On 13 March, English elite football was suspended until early April, including the Premier League, English Football League, FA Women's Super League and FA Women's Championship.[26]
By 19 March, the Belarusian Premier League was the only active top flight in all 55 UEFA member associations.[27]
On 5 May 2020, Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) chief executive Neil Doncaster summarised the situation in his country during a video conference involving the Scottish Football Association, Scottish Rugby and others in respect of the COVID-19 pandemic; he stated that "gate receipts make up a far higher proportion of our income than in England, which benefits from huge TV deals, so until we get back to playing in front of crowds, our game will remain in grave peril."[28]
In June 2020, chairman of Premier League football side Tottenham Hotspur, Daniel Levy, revealed that the club has taken a loan of £175 million from the Bank of England. The chairman said that money has been taken to tackle with the gripping effects of coronavirus pandemic on the club.[29]
On June 30, 2020, Premier League chief executive Richard Masters announced £1,000,000 as aid for next seasons of the Women’s Super League and Championship to mitigate the effect of coronavirus.[30]
Wigan Athletic fell into administration on 1 July after being negatively affected by the pandemic lockdown.[31] By appointing Paul Stanley, Gerald Krasner and Dean Watson from Begbies Traynor, it became the first professional club in England to call up administrators since the pandemic had begun.[32]
The Bundesliga became the first major European league to return following the pandemic on 16 May. In the subsequent weeks, many other leagues followed suit. La Liga returned on 11 June, the Premier League on 17 June, and Serie A on 20 June.
North America[edit]
On 12 March 2020, the CONCACAF Champions League was suspended with immediate effect.[33]
The same day, Major League Soccer was suspended for 30 days.[34]
Also on 12 March, the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), whose season was not scheduled to start until 18 April, canceled its preseason matches,[35] and also imposed a moratorium on team training that initially ran through 22 March.[36]
On 19 March, Major League Soccer's suspension was extended to a target return date of 10 May.[37] On 14 April, MLS announced that it was "extremely unlikely based on the guidance of federal and local public health authorities" that they would meet this target, and stated that "our goal remains to play as many games as possible, and while we currently have enough dates to play the entire season, we recognize at this time that it may become difficult to do so."[38]
On 20 March, the Canadian Premier League announced a postponement of their season which was scheduled to start on 11 April. [39]
The day after MLS was initially postponed, all CONCACAF competitions scheduled for the next month were suspended.[40]
The 2019–20 Major Arena Soccer League season was terminated early, effective 12 March.[41]
The USL Championship suspended the 2020 season on 12 March, for at least 30 days.[42]
The National Independent Soccer Association suspended the Spring portion of its 2019–20 season on 12 March for at least 30 days.[43] On 27 April, following a second suspension of play, NISA announced it would cancel the rest of its 2020 Spring season.[44][45]
Match week 10 of Liga MX, Women's Liga MX, and Ascenso MX took place but as of 15 March, club owners and league executives had then taken a decision to postpone all Mexican football activity until further notice.[46] As of 22 May, Mexican football executives announce the termination of the remainder of the current Clausura 2020 championship.[47]
On 10 June, Major League Soccer announced a return to action on 8 July with a mini-tournament, called the MLS is Back Tournament at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World near Orlando, Florida, with all group stage matches counting towards the regular season standings.
On 24 July, Liga MX inaugurates the 2020–21 Liga MX season also known as Torneo Guard1anes 2020, the season is dedicated to Mexico’s frontline healthcare and medical staff. Mazatlán F.C. debuts in Liga MX replacing the dissolved Monarcas Morelia. [48]
On 29 July, the Canadian Premier League announced a return to play on 13 August with a modified format called "The Island Games" to determine a 2020 champion. These games will be played behind closed doors at the University of Prince Edward Island in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. The shortened season will end in September with the Finals.[49]
South America[edit]
On 12 March 2020, CONMEBOL announced that the Copa Libertadores would be temporarily suspended.[50]
On 15 March, all top-tier football in Brazil was suspended until April.[51]
Major football league resume date and will reestablish dates[edit]
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An abandonment of season on major football league[edit]
International football[edit]
On 13 March 2020, FIFA announced that clubs did not have to release players to their national teams during the international windows of March and April 2020, while players also had the option to decline a call-up without any consequences. FIFA also recommended that all international matches during these windows be postponed, though the final decision was left to the competition organisers or member associations for friendly matches.[52]
On 9 March 2020, the Oceania Football Confederation announced that all tournaments were postponed until May 2020.[53]
FIFA World Cup qualification[edit]
The qualifiers for the 2022 FIFA World Cup was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2020, it was announced that Asian qualifier matches due to take place in March and June 2020 were postponed to later dates.[54] and the South American qualifiers due to take place in March 2020 were postponed to later dates.[55]
Olympic qualification[edit]
Play-off matches between South Korea and China in the 2020 AFC Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament were also postponed.[56]
Continental tournaments[edit]
On 17 March 2020, CAF announced that the 2020 African Nations Championship had been postponed to a later date due to the pandemic.[57] On 30 June CAF announced that the tournament would be held in January 2021.
Concerns were raised regarding UEFA Euro 2020, being held in twelve host cities across Europe, and the potential impact of the coronavirus on players, staff and tournament visitors.[58] UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin said the organisation was confident that the situation could be dealt with, while general secretary Theodore Theodoridis stated that UEFA was maintaining contact with the World Health Organization and national governments regarding the coronavirus.[59] UEFA announced that a videoconference would be held on 17 March with representatives of its 55 member associations, along with a FIFPro representative and the boards of the European Club Association and European Leagues, to discuss the response to the outbreak for domestic and European competitions, including Euro 2020.[60] The tournament was moved by 12 months.[61] As a result, UEFA Women's Euro 2021 was similarly moved back 12 months, due to the original dates clashing with the rearranged Euro 2020 and 2020 Summer Olympics dates.[62]
On 17 March, CONMEBOL announced that the 2020 edition of Copa América was postponed to 2021.[63]
On 21 April 2020, the Oceania Football Confederation announced that due to the pandemic and the difficulty in rescheduling to another date in the FIFA International Match Calendar, the 2020 OFC Nations Cup would be cancelled.[64]
Youth tournaments[edit]
On 3 April 2020, FIFA announced that the 2020 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, scheduled to be held in Panama and Costa Rica in August, and the 2020 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup, scheduled to be held in India in November, would be postponed and rescheduled.[65]
Collegiate soccer[edit]
Two National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I members announced that they had eliminated their men's soccer teams effective immediately. First, on 14 April, the University of Cincinnati shuttered its team, citing "profound challenges and widespread uncertainty" resulting from the pandemic.[66] Then, on 26 May, Appalachian State University dropped three men's teams, including soccer, "in response to the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic".[67]
- The Atlantic 10 Men's Soccer Tournament, for the 2020 season only, will be reduced from eight teams to four, to minimize travel and contamination.[68]
- The Big East Conference divided into two divisions, the "East" and "Midwest" divisions to minimize travel and to regionalize conference play.[69]
- The Big South Conference Men's Soccer Tournament, for the 2020 season only, will be reduced from six teams to four, to minimize travel and contamination.[70]
- The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, announced that the men's soccer season will begin on September 11, rather than August 28.[71]
- The Mid-American Conference discontinued its men's and women's soccer tournaments.[72]
- The Southern Conference Men's Soccer Tournament, for the 2020 season only, will be reduced from six teams to four, to minimize travel and contamination.[73]
List of affected events[edit]
Leagues[edit]
List of affected top-flight football leagues:
Curtailed[edit]
Postponed[edit]
| League | Country | Season | Original schedule | Postponed | Resumed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| K League 1 |  South Korea |
2020 | 29 February – 4 October 2020 | 24 February 2020 | 8 May 2020 | [121] |
| Faroe Islands Premier League |  Faroe Islands |
2020 | 8 March 2020 – 7 November 2020 | 8 March 2020 | 9 May 2020 | [122] |
| Bundesliga |  Germany |
2019–20 | 16 August 2019 – 27 June 2020 | 13 March 2020 | 16 May 2020 | [123] |
| Liga FPD |  Costa Rica |
Clausura 2020 | 11 January 2020 – 17 or 31 May 2020 | 18 March 2020 | 19 May 2020 | [124] |
| Meistriliiga |  Estonia |
2020 | 6 March 2020 – 7 November 2020 | 8 March 2020 | 19 May 2020 | [125] |
| Nemzeti Bajnokság I |  Hungary |
2019–20 | 21 July 2019 – May 2020 | 16 March 2020 | 17 May 2020 | [126] |
| Danish Superliga |  Denmark |
2019–20 | 12 July 2019 – 24 May 2020 | 12 March 2020 | 29 May 2020 | [127] |
| Frauen-Bundesliga | Germany |
2019–20 | 17 August 2019 – 17 May 2020 | 16 March 2020 | 29 May 2020 | [128] |
| Ekstraklasa |  Poland |
2019–20 | 12 July 2019 – 17 May 2020 | 13 March 2020 | 29 May 2020 | [129] |
| SuperLiga |  Serbia |
2019–20 | 19 July 2019 – May 2020 | 15 March 2020 | 30 May 2020 | [130] |
| Ukrainian Premier League |  Ukraine |
2019–20 | 28 July 2019 – May 2020 | 17 March 2020 | 30 May 2020 | [131] |
| Kategoria Superiore |  Albania |
2019–20 | 23 August 2019 – May 2020 | 12 March 2020 | 3 June 2020 | [132] |
| Primeira Liga |  Portugal |
2019–20 | 9 August 2019 – 17 May 2020 | 12 March 2020 | 3 June 2020 | [133] |
| First Professional Football League |  Bulgaria |
2019–20 | 12 July 2019 – May 2020 | 13 March 2020 | 5 June 2020 | [134] |
| Croatian First Football League |  Croatia |
2019–20 | 19 July 2019 – May 2020 | 12 March 2020 | 6 June 2020 | [135] |
| La Liga |  Spain |
2019–20 | 16 August 2019 – 24 May 2020 | 12 March 2020 | 11 June 2020 | [136] |
| Liga I |  Romania |
2019–20 | 12 July 2019 – June 2020 | 12 March 2020 | 12 June 2020 | [137] |
| Slovak First Football League |  Slovakia |
2019–20 | 20 July 2019 – 24 May 2020 | 12 March 2020 | 13 June 2020 | |
| Allsvenskan |  Sweden |
2020 | 4 April 2020 – 8 November 2020 | 19 March 2020 | 14 June 2020 | [138] |
| Eliteserien |  Norway |
2020 | 4 April 2020 – 29 November 2020 | 12 March 2020 | 16 June 2020 | [139] |
| Premier League |  England |
2019–20 | 9 August 2019 – 17 May 2020 | 13 March 2020 | 17 June 2020 | [140] |
| Serie A |  Italy |
2019–20 | 25 August 2019 – 24 May 2020 | 9 March 2020 | 20 June 2020 | [141] |
| Veikkausliiga |  Finland |
2020 | 3 April 2020 – 1 September 2020 | 13 March 2020 | 1 July 2020 | [142] |
| J1 League |  Japan |
2020 | 21 February – 5 December 2020 | 25 February 2020 | 4 July 2020 | [143] |
| Major League Soccer |  United States Canada |
2020 | 29 February – 7 November 2020 | 12 March 2020 | 8 July 2020 | [144] |
| Philippines Football League |  Philippines |
2020 | May 2020 (start date) | 13 March 2020 | TBA | [145] |
Tournaments[edit]
Cancelled[edit]
| Tournament | Host country | Original schedule | Cancellation date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 OFC Nations Cup |  New Zealand |
6–20 June 2020 | 21 April 2020 |
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