Premier League clubs on Thursday agreed to restart the 2019/20 season on June 17, provided that all safety requirements are in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Liverpool is on the verge of winning the Premier League. (AFP)
Aston Villa v Sheffield United and Manchester City v Arsenal — both rearranged games — will take place on that date, the English top-flight said in a statement.
After those matches, all 20 clubs would have played 29 matches heading into the weekend of June 19-21, when the rest of the top flight is scheduled to be in action.
The last Premier League match before the shutdown was Leicester versus Aston Villa on March 9, with all English professional football suspended four days later.
Premier League shareholders on Thursday also approved a proposal that would see all 92 remaining matches broadcast live in Britain, including some games on the BBC.
Planned kick-off times would also differ from the traditional times.
“Today we have provisionally agreed to resume the Premier League on Wednesday 17 June,” said Premier League chief executive Richard Masters.
“But this date cannot be confirmed until we have met all the safety requirements needed, as the health and welfare of all participants and supporters is our priority.
“Sadly, matches will have to take place without fans in stadiums, so we are pleased to have come up with a positive solution for supporters to be able to watch all the remaining 92 matches.”
England captain Harry Kane, who plays for Tottenham, tweeted: “Football is back soon.”
SERIE A ALSO
GETS GREEN LIGHT
Meanwhile, Italy’s Serie A was given the green light on Thursday to resume on June 20 after a three-month absence as one of the countries hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic begins to ease restrictions.
Sports Minister Vincenzo Spadafora said that the government’s Technical and Scientific Committee (CTS) had agreed to the health protocol proposed by Italian football chiefs.
“Italy has started to return to normal life again, it is only right that football should do the same,” said Spadafora.
“The federation assured me that it had a Plan B and a Plan C.
“In light of these considerations, the championship can resume on June 20.”
Italian football federation (FIGC) president Gabriele Gravina told the minister during the video conference that a play-off system would be used if the championship were again interrupted, while the existing standings would be used if it were stopped.
“We had a very useful meeting,” said Spadafora. “From the start, I said that football could restart once all the security conditions had been met.” (AFP)
