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The K-League, the first major championship in the world to restart

No handshakes, goal celebrations or player dialogues: two months after the scheduled date, the South Korean football championship begins today behind closed doors, with very strict rules due to the new coronavirus . It’s a global spotlight for the K-League, making it the first major championship in the world to restart since the outbreak of the Covid-19, even if some minor competitions continued their season during the pandemic. , like the championships of Belarus, Taiwan or Turkmenistan.

In Europe, the German government on Wednesday authorized the resumption of the championship behind closed doors from mid-May, on the basis of draconian sanitary measures, despite the risks and the criticisms coming from other sports. Yesterday, having convened its general assembly, the German Football League (DFL) indicated that the championship will resume on Saturday May 16, for its 26th day, with in particular the derby of the Ruhr opposing Dortmund to Schalke. Bayern Munich, the leader with a four-point lead over Dortmund after 25 days, will play on Sunday May 17 in Berlin against the promoted Union. Six meetings are scheduled on Saturday, two on Sunday and one, Bremen-Leverkusen, the following Monday. More than two months after the interruption of competitions due to the pandemic, the Bundesliga will thus be the first major European championship to restart; like other smaller leagues (Portugal, Turkey, Serbia, Croatia and Montenegro, between late May and early June).

For the other major European championships remaining, that of Spain is planning a “return to competition in June”, announced the Spanish Football League (LaLiga), while training for professional teams began to resume individually this week . In England, the Premier League is trying to build a Restart project (restart) which aims to return to competition on June 8, also behind closed doors. At a meeting last Friday, the top 20 clubs were informed of a plan to play the remaining 92 games in the 2019-2020 season on neutral ground. Resumption of training would be set for May 18, giving clubs three weeks to prepare.

In Italy, the five-time Golden Ball Cristiano Ronaldo returned to Turin on Monday evening and the players can resume individual training. But there is nothing to say that the championship will resume despite the lighter containment measures. The government has cooled Serie A clubs by announcing last week that group training could not resume until May 18, making the goal of a resumption in early June very difficult. The new horizon is now Wednesday June 10 or the weekend of June 13 and 14. However, on Wednesday evening, the Italian Minister for Sports, Vincenzo Spadafora, again showered the hopes of the calcio, warning that it was “impossible to fix a certain date” for a resumption of the championship. “We have to wait for data on the contagion curve for the next two weeks, as it has only been two days since the country entered the phase of gradual deconfinement. Only then can the government decide, “he said. The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) was scheduled to meet with the government’s technical science committee yesterday to discuss the medical protocol for group training.

Major Championships too, France and the Netherlands have had to cancel their seasons because government measures to fight the Covid-19 do not allow them to resume in time to finish the competition without the next season suffering. These two countries are the first members of UEFA (the European football confederation) to put an end to their championships. And Belgium should also follow: the government announced on Wednesday the suspension of all sports competitions in the country until July 31, paving the way for a definitive end to the football season as desired by the majority of professional clubs. The European Federations have until 25 May to inform UEFA whether their championship will resume, and if so, when and in what format.

Sané at Bayern Munich?

Bayern Munich and Manchester City striker Leroy Sané agree to the transfer, but the sum remains to be negotiated between the two clubs, said Sport Bild. Bayern is said to have offered 40 million euros for the 24-year-old German international, to whom it would offer a 5-year contract. Until recently, a sum of 100 million was raised for this young striker who also passes for one of the future big stars of the German team.

In addition, midfielder Thiago Alcantara has extended his contract with Bayern, reported Bild and Sport Bild. The length of the extension is not known. The current contract of the 29-year-old Spaniard expires in June 2021. Arrived from Barcelona in 2013 for 25 million euros, Thiago won 6 titles of champion of Germany and 3 Cups of Germany with Bayern, for whom he has played 227 matches and scored 31 goals in all competitions.

Source: AFP

No handshakes, goal celebrations or player dialogues: two months after the scheduled date, the South Korean football championship begins today behind closed doors, with very strict rules due to the new coronavirus . This is a global spotlight for the K-League, which becomes the first major championship in the …

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