Bundesliga to resume, step in the unknown

BERLIN: Bundesliga clubs were racing Thursday to get ready for the restart of the season in nine days’ time (May 16), amid concerns about whether the players will stick to the hygiene guidelines implemented to ensure the campaign is completed. All games will be played without spectators. The opening day’s key game is between second-placed Borussia Dortmund and arch-rivals Schalke in the Ruhr derby at Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park —but instead of being roared on by an 81,000 crowd, the teams will play in an empty stadium.

On Thursday, Dortmund, who were four points behind leaders Bayern Munich when the league was halted, held full training after seven weeks. The Bundesliga wants to complete the last nine rounds before June 30 to secure 300m euros in TV money.

However, it is a step into the unknown. “One must not forget, we are in a situation that we do not know,” said Bayern chairman Karl-heinz Rummenigge.

The worry is that an outbreak of the coronavirus in the league could again halt the resumed season, this time for good. AFP

LONDON: WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman expects professional boxing to return without spectators and with judges officiating by video from home. Sulaiman said the World Boxing Council has produced a protocol for fights during the pandemic that limit, for instance, a four-fight card to about 40-50 people at a venue. Those numbers include one handler for each fighter, boxing commission supervisors, media and TV production crews. “The judges will be judging from home via access to the live video,” Sulaiman said.