Emeka Nweze
The world is in a muddle at the moment as the coronavirus sweeps across every continent, causing fear and panic and adversely affecting every aspect of human life. The virus has impacted the world economy, daily life, the entertainment industry, sports, among others, bringing everything and everyone to a standstill.
Group gatherings have been banned in many world cities and people have been asked to stay indoors and self quarantine. As sports naturally draw large crowd of people, decision makers have thought it wise to cut off sporting events to prevent more spread.
From football to athletics, here are all the sporting events impacted by the coronavirus.
Football
The Premier League and EFL have announced all top tier football will be suspended until 3 April
La Liga also announced it has suspended “at least the next two rounds of matches” as a result of the pandemic. This means that there is a possibility that no more games could be played in what remains of the 2019-20 season.
In Italy, where the virus is very rampant, all domestic sporting action, including Serie A matches has been suspended until April 3,
The German Football League (DFL) has recommended a Bundesliga 1 and 2 suspension until April 2. The body said there were “suspicions of a coronavirus infection in the vicinity of several clubs and their teams and that further infections cannot be ruled out”.
Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) – in a unanimous decision with all board of directors, suspended all Ligue 1 and 2 games
Uefa have confirmed the remaining Champions League round of 16 second fixtures are all postponed with no date to reschedule yet. While the same is true of Europa League last-16 second legs, as well as the first legs of Sevilla vs Roma and Inter vs Getafe.
Major League Soccer has also announced the suspension of matches for 30 days with immediate effect in order to contain the pandemic.
European football’s governing body has also postponed Euro 2020 until the summer of 2021. UEFA also confirmed that the Euro 2020 play-offs, due to be played later this month, will now be played in the June 2020 international break.
In South America, 2020 Copa America has been moved to 2021 to enable South American players based in Europe the opportunity to finish their league campaigns.
In Africa, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has suspended the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers over the FIFA break due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Formula One
McLaren had initially withdrawn from the Australian Grand Prix earlier on Thursday after a member of staff tested positive for the illness. The race was still set to go on until it was eventually decided to suspend the first race of the season. Following that, Bahrain, Vietnam have also been canceled and Dutch GP in May might also be called off.
Basketball
The NBA season has been suspended “until further notice” after several players including Kevin Durant tested positive for the virus.
Tennis
The French Open grand slam has been postponed until September
The ATP has announced a six-week suspension of the men’s professional tennis tour due to “escalating health and safety issues” arising from the coronavirus outbreak.
The BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, where the likes of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic were due to compete, was also called off.
The Miami Open which was due to start on 23 March, has been cancelled after a ban on mass gatherings.
Athletics
The Diamond League has canceled its first three track events of the year due to the coronavirus pandemic and travel bans. The season is now tentatively set to begin in Stockholm on May 24.
The Paris Marathon, which was due to take place on April 5, has also been postponed until 18 October and the Rome Marathon, scheduled for 29 March, has been cancelled.
