Premier League faces matches behind closed doors ‘within weeks’
Pre-game handshakes ban due to coronavirus Loss of revenue could cripple smaller clubs
Premier League matches are likely to be played behind closed doors within weeks due to the escalating coronavirus crisis.
Sasha Ryazantsev, Everton’s chief finance officer, has become the first member of England’s top tier to state they are now forecasting the possibility of a mass shutout after the first death in Britain was confirmed.
Pre-match handshakes have already been banned for this weekend’s Premier League matches and the 20 top-flight clubs have been warned by league administrators of the possibility of stand closures, which would create a black hole worth hundreds of millions to the entire football pyramid.
The London Marathon and the Grand National appear at particular risk in the weeks ahead, but governing bodies across sport said last night that they will continue to be led by Public Health England.
While the Government is resisting pressure to launch draconian measures on the multi-billion pound industry, Ryazantsev said that clubs were becoming increasingly concerned over stadium closures, now 116 cases had been confirmed in the UK.
“It would be a forced decision rather than one we would proactively engage in,” he said at the FT Business of Football Summit in London. “But the whole situation goes far beyond the world of sport. Of course nobody wants to play behind closed doors and I don’t think it’s inevitable at the moment that it will happen. But we feel it is quite likely in the coming weeks.”
Neighbours Liverpool, meanwhile, announced they were already taking “proactive measures” by deciding not to use onpitch mascots. In addition, club employees will not travel to highrisk countries, while the attention of staff and supporters is being drawn to the increased need for good personal hygiene.
The club have followed the advice of John Ashton, the former public health director for the North-west, who told The Daily Telegraph recently that hygiene at Anfield, where he has a season ticket, needed to improve.
“For supporters planning on attending Anfield, there will be hand sanitisers and/or antibacterial handwash in all the washrooms at Anfield as well as additional information posters reinforcing the official medical advice for everyone to take personal responsibility for excellent personal hygiene,” Liverpool said.
The league had written to clubs to explain the possibility of a fan shutout on Tuesday and the Telegraph understands administrators will today contact accredited media to ask them for their help in reducing risk.
Bob Ratcliffe, chief executive of the Ineos Football conglomerate which considered buying Chelsea and Newcastle, last night expressed particular concern for lower-league teams. “I’m not sure how they could be insured for such a situation,” he told The Telegraph.
Broadcasters and reporters will not be forced to stay away from matches, however, due to rights obligations that the league has to keep.
The decision to close stadiums cannot be made individually by clubs, and the Premier League, English Football League and Football Association all say their position will be led by Government advice.
England’s friendly against Italy at Wembley on March 27 could still be called off regardless, however, with Italian authorities having announced a mass fan ban until April.
Domestically, much of the concern for governing bodies will be the fate of smaller clubs, who will struggle to pay the bills without bringing in match-day revenue.
Phil Parkinson, the manager of Sunderland, has revealed his players have been banned from travelling abroad as part of preventive measures.
European football leaders are also planning how they will limit the damage of stadium closures. Andrea Agnelli, the Juventus and European Club Association chairman, thinks it is “premature”, but a “good idea” that future financial fair play rules account for loss of match-day revenue.
Although Italy’s decree covers only sporting events within its own borders, there are now serious questions over the likelihood of tens of thousands of English and Italian fans being allowed to attend Wembley together later this month. The FA said last night there was “no change” over plans for the friendly, but Gianluca Vialli, the former Chelsea and Watford manager who has been appointed Italy’s delegation chief, believes it is unclear whether the game will go ahead.
The Italian football league’s governing body has released a revised schedule, with six Serie A matches that were postponed last week to be played this weekend under the behind-closed-doors restrictions, including Juventus v Inter Milan.
Meanwhile, it looks increasingly likely that the Fifa Congress in Addis Ababa in early June will be called off after a warning letter was sent out by the governing body to the Ethiopian Football Association.