English football suspension extended to end of April due to coronavirus pandemic

The Premier League, Football League and FA Cup in England will not resume anytime before 30 April, the governing bodies responsible for those tournaments have announced.

The move comes amid the coronavirus pandemic which has already put paid to the majority of sporting events around the world.

With no games due to take place for the next six weeks, it has been agreed that the football season will now be extended.

In a statement, the FA, Premier League, EFL and women’s professional game, together with the Professional Footballers Association (PFA) and League Managers Association (LMA), said:

“We understand we are in unprecedented times and our thoughts are with everyone affected by COVID-19.

“We are united in our commitment to finding ways of resuming the 2019/20 football season and ensuring all domestic and European club league and cup matches are played as soon as it is safe and possible to do so.

“We have collectively supported UEFA in postponing Euro 2020 to create space in the calendar to ensure domestic and European club league and cup matches have an increased opportunity to be played and, in doing so, maintain the integrity of each competition.

“The FA’s Rules and Regulations state that the season shall terminate not later than the 1 June and each competition shall, within the limit laid down by The FA, determine the length of its own playing season. However, The FA’s Board has agreed for this limit to be extended indefinitely for the 2019-20 season in relation to Professional Football.”

“Additionally, we have collectively agreed that the professional game in England will be further postponed until no earlier than 30 April.”

Premier League matches have been suspended since 12 March.

The statement added: “The progress of COVID-19 remains unclear and we can reassure everyone the health and welfare of players, staff and supporters are our priority. We will continue to follow Government advice and work collaboratively to keep the situation under review and explore all options available to find ways of resuming the season when the conditions allow.

“We would all like to re-emphasise that our thoughts are with everyone affected by Covid 19.”

The Premier League said that it is continuing to work alongside the Government in asking fans to follow NHS advice to help control the impact of the coronavirus outbreak.