EPL extends suspension, clubs to consult players on wage cut
nLONDON: The Premier League on Friday said it wouldn’t resume the 2019/20 season at the beginning of May, pushing back its ongoing suspension beyond April 30, following a meeting of stakeholders.
Without indicating any date for a possible resumption, the league stated that “any return to play will only be with the full support of Government and when medical guidance allows”.
The last Premier League game was played on March 9, when Leicester City beat Aston Villa at home. In Friday’s meeting, all 20 top-tier clubs also decided to consult their players regarding a proposed deduction in wages to help them bear the brunt of the pandemic’s financial fallout. The wage-cut proposal includes “a combination of conditional reductions and deferrals amounting to 30 per cent of total annual remuneration”.
To help lower league clubs deal with the financial distress, clubs agreed to advance funds amounting to £125 million.
UEFA’S WARNING
A day earlier, UEFA and Europe’s top clubs stated their determination to conclude the football season and warned that teams may be excluded from next season’s European competitions if their domestic competitions are ended prematurely.
In a joint letter released late on Thursday, UEFA, the European Club Association (ECA), and the European Leagues body representing nearly a thousand clubs in 29 nations, said they were looking at playing on into July and August if need be.
“Since participation in UEFA club competitions is determined by the sporting result achieved at the end of a full domestic competition, a premature termination would cast doubts about the fulfillment of such condition,” the letter warned domestic leagues.
The joint response came after the Belgian Pro League announced on Thursday that it recommended declaring the season over with the present table accepted as final, meaning Club Brugge are this season’s champions. It is the first European league to take such a measure, although more could follow.
In Netherlands too, calls are growing for a season cancellation. Hours after Belgium’s move on Thursday, two more leading Dutch clubs joined champions Ajax in calling for cancellation of the rest of the season.