French football clubs expected to be able to resume competition in mid-June and finish the current season. The ace. They must draw a final line on the championship, interrupted since March 13. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announced on Tuesday April 28 that "The 2019-2020 season of professional sports, especially that of football, cannot(it) not resume ”.
The Football Federation confirmed Tuesday night that the season has ended. League 1 had set itself the goal of resuming matches on June 17. The clubs put forward the need to go to the end of the current season in order, above all, to touch the television rights still owed by the channels Canal + and BeIN Sports, which weigh heavily on budgets.
The Professional Football League (LFP) had developed in recent days a recovery plan, with health support, to find first the path of training from May 11, then that of the matches.
The president of the French Football Federation (FFF), Noël Le Graët, had mentioned the possibility of restarting first with the final of the Coupe de France (PSG – Saint-Etienne) on June 13 or 20, then the final of the League Cup (PSG – Lyon) three days later, before resuming the championship.
Some voices in the small world of French football had, however, called for an end to it. The co-president of the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP), Sylvain Kastendeuch, had thus estimated, in a forum published by The world, that a recovery would be "Rushed and dangerous" and had called for a halt to the competitions if the security conditions for the players were not met.
In an interview at World, the football director and general manager of the OGC Nice, Julien Fournier, also assured that an outright stop of the current season was desirable, with a start of the next season in August.
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Camera may be possible in August
Prime Minister's remarks on "The 2019-2020 professional sports season" who " will not be able to resume " also concerns the rugby championship.
"It will not be possible either to practice sport in covered places, or collective or contact sports", explained Edouard Philippe.
The Top 14 had drawn a line on the organization of the final stages between the end of June and the middle of July, but still hoped "A resumption of competitions before the end of the summer".
The Prime Minister, however, clarified that "Major sporting and cultural events, in particular festivals, large trade fairs, all events which bring together more than 5000 participants and are therefore the subject of a declaration at the prefecture and must be organized well in advance, cannot be held before September ”.
This could leave room for in camera in August. This is what the sports ministry told Agence France-Presse: "Before the end of July, there can be no competition, even behind closed doors". But " at this stage " and subject to an unfavorable development of the health situation, the leagues "Can consider ending their season in August, or in September, they decide".
In cycling, this however excludes the holding of the Critérium du Dauphiné in August, as had been mentioned, and this raises the question of the Tour de France, whose organizers postponed the start to the end of August. "At this stage, the doctrine announced by the Prime Minister requires neither its postponement nor its cancellation", however assured the ministry of sports, while warning that restrictions on the presence of the public are possible.
Reluctance and tension elsewhere in Europe
The management of the release from confinement for team sports, and especially for football, gave rise to much hesitation and a certain number of tensions in neighboring European countries.
The Netherlands are the only ones to have clarified the situation: they decided, on April 24, for a final cessation of the championship, public events being prohibited until 1er September.
Belgium was preparing to do the same. But on Monday, April 27, the Pro League, which manages the elite, preferred to postpone its general assembly until early May in the absence of a clear and explicit position from the National Security Council regarding professional sport.
The first to find the grounds for matches could be the German clubs. Could … because if they resumed training in early April, if they announced they were ready to resume the championship from May 9, and if Health Minister Jens Spahn said that"With caution matches behind closed doors (would be) certainly again possible ", the green light from the country's authorities has still not been given.
This political “go”, on the other hand, seems more uncertain in Italy. Italian clubs were hoping to return to the pitch on May 4. But the government does not mean it that way. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced Monday night that player rallies could only take place from May 18, at best.
Football recovery protocol deemed insufficient in Italy
The recovery protocol developed by Italian football has been judged " insufficient " by the technical-scientific committee which advises the government and it "Requested additional information", said sports minister Vincenzo Spadafora. “The recovery must be gradual and rigid protocols are necessary. It will be necessary to wait ", added the latter.
According to the Italian sports daily The Gazzetta dello Sport, clubs denounce breach of political agreement and attack on football. "The claims of those who claim there is a conspiracy against Serie A (the Italian championship) are ridiculous. I make my decisions respecting the rules ”, assured Mr. Spadafora.
The call to move cautiously also applies to Spain. " I can't tell you now if professional football will be able to resume its activity before summer. It would be reckless on my part ", said Health Minister Salvador Illa on Sunday.
But on Tuesday, the Spanish government announced that footballers will be able to resume a "Basic training" from May 4. A protocol to be followed has been defined: the players will first receive their exercises by mail, then will have to arrive at the training center already in uniform, with gloves and a mask, to avoid having to go through the changing rooms. There can only be six players maximum on the field at the same time.
"Talks" for English Premier League clubs
The situation is no less clear in England, where the Secretary of State for Sport, Oliver Dowden, assured, Monday in Parliament, to have been "In talks with the Premier League, with a view to restarting football as soon as possible". But no timetable has yet been set.
On Monday, four clubs, including Arsenal, reopened their player training centers, with supervised access limited to individual sessions. According to Guardian, clubs are expected to assemble on Friday to organize the resumption of the championship on June 9. In camera. The Times He said on Monday that there was a "Project Restart", planning to resume training on May 18 and the matches on June 8.
In any case, the European leagues will have to be fixed fairly quickly on what they can and cannot do and what they will choose to do. According to The team, they were informed on Tuesday that they had until 25 May to notify UEFA of their intention to resume or not to resume national competitions.
