Football’s biggest governing bodies are working together to try and ensure clubs like Sheffield United finish the 2019/20 season.
Nearly all football across Europe is currently suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Uefa responded to this by postponing the European Championship by a year so that it will now take place in the summer of 2021.
This will hopefully help domestic league and cup competitions complete their campaign by June 30.
After Uefa’s decisions, the Guardian reports the Football Association, Premier League and EFL discussed what their next steps would be.
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They are also in conversation with the government about how best to help those clubs who will be hit worst financially.
So how could Sheffield United finish 2019/20?
(Photo by James Williamson – AMA/Getty Images)
As things stand, all football in the UK is suspended until April 3. Yet according to Sky Sports, it is widely considered that date will have to be pushed back further.
The main ambition now is to conclude all domestic and European club football by June 30. That will be a full month after the campaign is due to finish on May 30.
These games could be played behind closed doors if required. There is also the possibility of pushing the season into July, but that creates more issues.
Not least that players due to be out of contract this summer will be as of June 30. If 2019/20 is not complete, do they remain with their current club or start negotiating a new deal elsewhere?
Also, the longer it extends into the summer the closer the current campaign will get to the 2020/21 season – which is due to begin in early August.
In fact, the early stages of Champions League and Europa League qualification starts in July. But Uefa are working on alternative options for that.
The current proposal would also make for an extremely busy end to the campaign. It’s likely that teams such as the Blades would need to play three games a week, every week, until its conclusion.
