The coronavirus pandemic affected almost every industry around the world and the sports industry was no exception.
As the world learned more and more about the virus, various steps were taken to limit the spread of the virus and to “flatten the curve”. This meant measures like social distancing became the new norm and multiple countries around the world had to go on lockdowns. The worldwide sports industry was also hard-hit by the virus and all major sporting events and leagues had to be suspended indefinitely.
Fortunately, after almost three months of no action, Europe’s top football leagues are finally coming back! Here’s a look at how the different leagues are planning to get back up and running.
Related: Five Barcelona Players Tested Positive For Coronavirus
The Bundesliga
The German top-tier football league was the first of the major European leagues to restart its games on 16th May. While many other leagues were still planning to restart games or had canceled their seasons, the Bundesliga decided to go forward with its season while following adequate health regulations and safety protocols such as strict testing and playing in empty stadiums.
La Liga
La Liga, the highest football league in Spain, has decided to restart its season on the 11th of June. The first match will be held between Seville and Real Betis. Over the next 5 weeks, a total of 11 fixtures would be played with FC Barcelona and Real Madrid fighting for the title.
The English Premier League
The English Premier League is the most-watched football league in the world and like every other sporting league, it also had to go through a period of suspension since March that has lasted almost three months now. However, the EPL is all set to return with a confirmed date of 17th June 2020 when Aston Villa will play against Sheffield United and Manchester City will play against Arsenal.
Serie A
Serie A is the biggest football league in Italy, one of the hardest-hit countries when it comes to the pandemic. While there is still not a confirmed date when the league will resume, the government has made it clear that no sporting events would be allowed to resume until 14th June. Since the league isn’t canceled, we can assume it’ll resume its games at some point after 14th June.
Canceled Leagues
Unfortunately, a number of football leagues in Europe would not be resuming their seasons as they had been canceled due to the pandemic. The French League 1 and League 2, Belgium’s Pro-League, and Netherlands’ Eredivisie have canceled their 2019-20 season in response to the global pandemic.
Online bookmakers are all set to welcome punters back!
The suspension of top-tier football all around the world did not only hurt the sports industry but fans and betters as well.
Online bookmakers were forced to focus on other things like virtual games to keep their users engaged but the lack of football meant a significant number of punters were staying away from the action on their platforms.
As the top leagues in Europe slowly open back up again, online bookmakers would be ready with huge offers, rewards, and promotions to get punters back to the action. Top-rated bookmakers like Betway are ready to welcome back their players with some of the best promotions and offers in the market!
