Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
VIRUS SET TO HALT ENGLAND v ITALY
Euros warm-up may be axed as sport comes to grips with threat
GARETH SOUTHGATE could be told today that England’s Wembley friendly with Italy on March 27 will be the next sporting victim of the coronavirus outbreak.
FA chiefs will meet in London with government officials at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, along with Premier League bosses and sport broadcasters.
On the agenda will be the organisation and viability of sports events in the coming weeks with the England game in jeopardy as much of Italy is under lockdown and players are unable to travel.
It comes as the crisis spiralled out of control in Italy yesterday with 16 million people under quarantine and Serie A games already due to be played behind closed doors for the next month.
That means the notion that Italy could fly to England for a game seems highly unlikely with the FA awaiting instructions from the meeting.
Rather than agree decisions, today’s meeting is likely to put into place plans for the forthcoming weeks with an increasing number of Premier League clubs fully expecting games to be played behind locked doors before the end of the month.
The contingency planning would then allow football and sports chiefs to act quickly if the situation gets worse. There could be a ban on over-70s going to games because they are vulnerable to the killer bug, while Sky and BT could be asked to show games for free if they are played in closed stadiums. Crowds could be limited to as few as 500.
FA bosses and the Premier League are stressing they are awaiting instructions, but should at least get some direction after today’s meeting. However, the virus has been wreaking havoc in Italy which is Europe’s worst-affected country where the death toll is into the hundreds.
Parma’s Serie A game with SPAL kicked off 75 minutes late with the players being ordered back to the dressing room amid calls for the league to be suspended.
Officials announced yesterday that the Bahrain Grand Prix will be staged on March 22 without fans. The
Chinese GP has already been cancelled, while Ferrari’s base in Maranello has been placed under lockdown as part of the quarantine area in northern Italy.
Formula One organisers said: “Bahrain has made the decision to hold this year’s race as a participantsonly event.
“Convening a major sporting event, which is open to the public and allows thousands of international travellers and local fans to interact in close proximity, would not be the right thing to do at the present time.”
Football clubs have banned players from giving autographs and appearing at community events, while Championship leaders Leeds announced yesterday that their women’s team and academy side will be relocated from their main training ground.
There are growing fears not just for England’s friendly match with Italy, but the whole of football’s Euro 2020 tournament and this summer’s Olympic Games in Tokyo.