Premier League Given Green Light To Return
May 11, 2020, 10:06 AM
(Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The UK Government has given the Premier League the green light to resume their season as soon as June 1st. In a 60-page document titled “Our Plan To Rebuild: The UK Government’s COVID-19 Recovery Strategy,” the document states that lockdown restrictions will only be eased once certain measures have been met. There are five stages in which the government hopes to reach in order for the UK to return to normalcy. The return of sports is a part of the second stage.
FA chairman Greg Clarke tells Premier League clubs that relegation won't be removed, nor will the season be voided, reports @martynziegler pic.twitter.com/W3Iq4X0vA3
— B/R Football (@brfootball) May 11, 2020
It also reads that all sporting events, post-June 1st, must take place “behind closed doors for broadcast while avoiding the risk of large scale social contact.”
Despite getting the green light from the government, the Premier League is yet to announce any sort of return. Although, every club is scheduled to vote over the next couple of days on how they wish to return to play, whenever that may be.
The league has been shut down since March 13 and still has 92 fixtures remaining on the 2019-20 season. The use of neutral stadiums may be the answer the league needs to resume.
Huge: the Premier League has been given the go-ahead by UK government to resume play (without fans) starting on June 1. https://t.co/sf06vqcKkL
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) May 11, 2020
Regardless, every soccer league in the world is trying to follow the actions of the German top division, Bundesliga, who is scheduled to return to play this upcoming weekend.
Tom Hackett is a Utah and Real Salt Lake Insider for KSLsports.com and host of the It’s Utah’s World Podcast (Utah Football themed) and The Lion’s Den Podcast (Real Salt Lake themed). Follow him on Twitter: @TomCantHackett.