QUICK OFF THE MARK
Football in dilemma over return to play
The professional football world has started discussions on resuming the halted season, as more and more countries come through the darkest period of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed more than 200,000 globally.
More voices have emerged after Germany became the first country in Europe to return to training earlier this month, with precautionary measures in place. But a specific date on the resumption of the league is yet to be determined.
Spain, which had the second most confirmed cases after the US, has also seen growing calls for La Liga to resume, but its Health Minister Salvador Illa said Sunday it would be “imprudent” to promise the football season would restart before the summer.
Italy, also one of the European epicenters of the coronavirus pandemic, announced its first steps in lifting the nationwide lockdown on Sunday, allowing footballers in the country to do individual training from May 4 and possible team training on May 18.
Following the announcement, Serie A clubs can begin preparing to start training in groups from May 18 and playing games from June 2.
Some advisors have suggested that playing behind closed doors will make it easier to contain the virus spread, but resuming games brings up a more challenging question: How can clubs make sure players and staff are safe?
Restarting the league means there will be home and away games, and a team’s collective journey poses a threat to every team member’s health, as a seemingly healthy person they come into contact with could be an asymptomatic carrier.
Of course, some will argue that tests for participants can be strengthened. But why should society put footballers at the top of the list for multiple coronavirus tests while there are patients who need to be treated?
And with the world still waiting for a vaccine for the coronavirus, meaning no one is immune to it, it is also risky to start holding mass gatherings.
China, the world’s most populous country, which has managed to control the virus spread after a months-long nationwide campaign, has yet to resume its large-scale sporting events due to safety concerns over a second wave of the pandemic.
Wuhan Zall, based in Wuhan, where the virus was first reported, only just resumed team training on April 22, after an unexpected 104-day suspension due to the pandemic.
In the US, where the number of confirmed coronavirus cases is close to 1 million, Major League Soccer has extended a league-wide training moratorium through May 15, with the resumption of match play to be delayed until June 8 at the earliest.
Dutch disaster
But what has really disappointed the football world is the Dutch Football Association, which has abandoned its top-flight Eredivisie season – the only football league to do so.
Such a move, along with the cancelation of relegations and promotions, is a denial of all the teams’ efforts from the 2019-20 season.
Many blamed the Dutch government for banning major events until September 1, but there are many more options available for finishing the season rather than directly abandoning it.
In France, the Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) announced plans to resume the 2019-20 Ligue 1 season on June 17, while awaiting a final decision on whether or not fixtures will be played out behind closed doors.
In the UK, the government is planning to set up the first of a series of regular meetings involving senior medical directors of the major sports this week in a bid to return to action as soon as possible.
Preliminary discussions could start, but it is still too early to decide when to resume play. Continue social distancing, and football can wait.