‘No elite sport in England till June 1’
Elite sport in England cannot return until at least June 1 and will have to take place without spectators present, a government document with guidelines on easing lockdown restrictions said on Monday. English Premier League clubs are meeting on Monday to discuss Project Restart, which aims for top-flight football to resume next month. Cricket and rugby authorities in England have said their sports will not resume until July.
The news however, is a blow to British horse racing, which had hoped to resume behind closed doors later this month.
LA LIGA AIMS FOR
JUNE 12 RESTART: PREZ
Liga president Javier Tebas said he hopes Spanish football will resume on June 12.
Many clubs, including La Liga champions Barcelona started individual training. Real Madrid too resumed individual training on Monday.
Meanwhile, five players from Spain’s top two leagues tested positive for coronavirus.
IBRAHIMOVIC RETURNS TO ITALY
Ibrahimovic returned to Italy on Monday and is set to spend time in quarantine before training with AC Milan ahead of the potential return of the Serie A season.
Ibrahimovic has been keeping up his fitness by training with Hammarby, the Stockholm-based club in which he bought a nearly 25 per cent stake last year.
He has practiced with Hammarby’s men’s and women’s teams, including playing a training match.
PORTUGAL WON’T PUT TEAMS IN QUARANTINE
Portugal, preparing to restart its football league on May 30, will not automatically order entire squads to be quarantined if one or more players test positive for coronavirus.
Government health guidelines said players should remain at home in a form of selfisolation, except to go to training and matches, and must be tested twice in the 48 hours before a game.
SERIE A TV RIGHTS PAYMENT HALTED
The companies holding the broadcasting rights to Italy’s Serie A have not paid the last instalment of the 2019-20 season, which has been halted, three sources said.
Italy’s top pay-tv operator SKY, sport digital firm DAZN and global sports agency IMG did not pay the 2019-20 final instalment, totalling roughly $238 million, the sources said.
ARCHERY, GYMNASTICS BODY NOT RECOGNISED
The Sports Ministry on Monday granted recognition to 54 national federations till September this year, leaving out the governing bodies of archery, golf, gymnastics and paralympics, among others.
The ministry granted fresh recognition to the All India Carrom Federation.