Blow for women’s game in Belarus

THE Belarusian Football Federation said it was postponing the start of its women’s Premier League after several players were found to have been in contact with possible carriers of the novel coronavirus.

Belarus is the only country in Europe still playing a men’s national football league, making it an unlikely draw for fans overseas where matches have been cancelled.

The federation said the Belarusian Women’s Premier League, which had been set to kick off yesterday, would not open its 2020 season until further notice.

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, in power since 1994, has been publicly sceptical about the need for strong action to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

This week he said that nobody would die from the coronavirus in Belarus and again rejected the need for the strict lockdown measures adopted by most countries.

The health ministry has reported 3,728 confirmed coronavirus cases and 36 deaths in the country. Lukashenko has said the fatalities were the result of pre-existing health conditions in the patients.

The World Health Organization has urged Belarus to implement tighter measures, warning that the outbreak in the country was entering a “concerning” new phase.