EPL eyes June as resumption date
The English Premier League is tentatively scheduling a plan which involves games starting after June 1, which would allow them to finish the season within six weeks and begin the 2020-2021 campaign on August 8 – heading off a financial catastrophe for clubs carrying huge wage bills.
The June 1 start date, in 10 weeks’ time, remains a target rather than anything approaching a certainty but, with the postponement of the European Championship by Uefa last week, this is one of the best-case scenarios being considered by the Premier League and English Football League.
The games would be played behind closed doors, which is a universally accepted proviso, and would need the Government to sanction the presence of emergency crews within the ground.
Those resources are in short supply amid the coronavirus pandemic that has caused an unprecedented shutdown of pubs, cafes, restaurants and public spaces, and no professional football played in the United Kingdom since March 13.
The Premier League, EFL and Football Association agreed on Thursday that there would be no games played until April 30 at the earliest but all governing bodies pledged to complete the 2019-2020 season.
Under the June 1 plan there would be a six-week window to finish the season around July 11, including the FA Cup, which would be challenging but possible and would satisfy the requirements of broadcasters, including key partners Sky Sports and BT Sport. Just as importantly, it would allow next season – the second in the threeyear NZ$17 billion deal with domestic and international broadcasters – to begin on time.
If the season could be completed within a six-week time frame it would allow a further four weeks of preparation and rest to get the players ready for another season.
Although finishing this campaign is the priority, beginning the new season is also a necessity as it is crucial to fulfilling the broadcast contracts.
There is the issue of some players being out of contract after June 30 although that is not viewed as insurmountable by the clubs, with governing body Fifa, which regulates registrations and transfers, promising to intervene.
Martin Semmens, the Southampton chief executive, confirmed yesterday that such an arrangement was possible. He told BBC Radio Solent: ‘‘We hope to get the league done by the end of June and that would be easier for everybody.’’