No football for the rest of March due to the outbreak of Coronavirus

The Premier League has taken decisive action by postponing all matches until April 3 at the earliest after club officials met on Friday. 

All Premier League and English Football League matches have been postponed amid the coronavirus crisis. Confirmation came after meetings involving league officials and club representatives on Friday.  

Synchronized Premier League and EFL announcements, released at 11:00 GMT, followed the news of Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta and Chelsea teenager Callum Hudson-Odoi testing positive for the COVID-19 virus (coronavirus). 

The UK government said on Thursday it was not yet necessary to postpone major sporting fixtures, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson declaring there was “no medical reason at the moment to ban such events.” 

However, the Premier League has taken the view that the time is right to call off games until the threat has subsided. The Premier League said in a statement, “Following a  meeting of shareholders today, it was unanimously decided to suspend the Premier League with the intention of returning on April 4, subject to medical advice and conditions at the time.” 

Premier League chief executive Richard Masters said, “Above all, we wish Mikel Arteta and Callum Hudson-Odoi speedy recoveries and everyone else affected by COVID-19. “In this unprecedented situation, we are working closely with our clubs, Government, the FA and EFL and can reassure everyone that health and welfare of players, staff and supporters are our priority.” 

The Premier League said its intention was to ensure the postponed fixtures are played at a later date. England’s friendly international games against Denmark and Italy have also been postponed, the FA said. Those games were due to take place on March 27 and March 31 at Wembley. 

Serie A, La Liga, the Champions League and the Europa League have all been delayed because of the virus outbreak and people hope that the month of April makes up for the missed action.  

Featured image credits- goal.com