{"id":14467,"date":"2020-05-07T12:27:25","date_gmt":"2020-05-07T16:27:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=14467"},"modified":"2020-05-09T10:29:36","modified_gmt":"2020-05-09T14:29:36","slug":"bundesliga-set-for-a-behind-closed-doors-return-on-may-16","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=14467","title":{"rendered":"Bundesliga Set For A Behind-Closed-Doors Return On May 16"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"The German Bundesliga is set to start again on May 16.<\/p>\n

Plans for the top two tiers of German football to restart were approved by the federal government on Wednesday, making the Bundesliga the first of Europe\u2019s \u2018Big Five\u2019 leagues to be given the green light after competitions across the continent were suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.<\/p>\n

The 36 clubs gathered via conference call on Thursday to formalize the fixture schedule, and it has been decided that matches will begin from May 16, restarting from matchday 26 and playing through to a final round of matches on the weekend of June 27 and 28.<\/p>\n

All the matches will be played behind closed doors.<\/p>\n

\"\"Among the highlights of the first round upon the league\u2019s resumption is the Ruhr derby between Borussia Dortmund and Schalke. Reigning champions Bayern Munich resume their quest to retain their title against Union Berlin on Sunday, May 17.<\/p>\n

Regular and widespread testing has been a key cornerstone of Germany\u2019s handling of the crisis from the beginning, and of the German Football League (DFL)\u2019s strategy to restart.<\/p>\n

It announced on Friday that the second wave of tests had been completed. Out of 1,695 conducted on staff connected to the 36 clubs, only two had come back positive. The DFL said those individuals\u2019 cases were reported immediately to the local health authorities.<\/p>\n

Italian clubs are also taking tentative steps towards a resumption of competition, in a country which has suffered badly from the Covid-19 outbreak.<\/p>\n

Roma\u2019s chief global sporting officer Manolo Zubiria set out the strict protocols being put in place at the club\u2019s Trigoria training base in an interview with the club\u2019s official website.<\/p>\n

He said individuals entering the complex will have their temperature and oxygen levels measured. If on a second reading an individual\u2019s temperature is above 37.5 degrees, they will be immediately sent home and monitored from a distance by medical staff.<\/p>\n

Players will train in groups no bigger than four, Zubiria said, and have been told to keep at least 10 metres apart at all times. They will be expected to wear face masks right up until the start of the session, change in individual changing rooms and seal up their own training kit. Communal spaces at the training ground such as the cafe will not be in use.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the Dutch health minister has warned spectators may not be able to return to watch sporting events in his country \u201cfor a year or more\u201d, until a vaccine is found.<\/p>\n

Professional sport even behind closed doors in Holland has been prohibited until September 1 at the earliest, which has already led to the top-flight Eredivisie football competition being forced to end prematurely.<\/p>\n

Dutch website voetbalprimeur.nl<\/a> quoted a letter from health minister Hugo de Jonge to the nation\u2019s parliament which read: \u201cWe cannot yet mention a date for the last step, the mass gatherings.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat is actually only possible if there is a vaccine and no one knows how long it will take. We hope of course soon, but a year or more is very real.\u201d<\/p>\n

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