Czech soccer clubs approve plan to restart on May 23

By: The Associated Press Posted: 1:08 PM CDT Tuesday, May. 12, 2020

PRAGUE, Czech Republic - Professional soccer clubs in the Czech Republic on Tuesday approved a proposal to restart the top two divisions this month after they were suspended by the coronavirus pandemic.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 12/05/2020 (2332 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

PRAGUE, Czech Republic – Professional soccer clubs in the Czech Republic on Tuesday approved a proposal to restart the top two divisions this month after they were suspended by the coronavirus pandemic.

The leagues had already agreed a plan for resuming play, but the clubs had to give it the green light because the competitions are now set to run until July. Some sponsorship deals and player contracts expire by the end of June, when the leagues were originally scheduled to conclude.

Six rounds of games in the regular season and the playoffs remain in the first division, which is now scheduled to be completed by July 15. All games will be without spectators.

FILE - In this file photo taken on Thursday, March 14, 2019, Slavia's Ibrahim-Benjamin Traore, left, celebrates scoring the decisive goal during their Europa League Round of 16 second leg soccer match between Slavia Praha and Sevilla in Prague, Czech Republic. The professional clubs in the top two soccer divisions in the Czech Republic approved on Tuesday, May 12, 2020 a restart of their competitions that were interrupted by the pandemic of the coronavirus. The first game in the first division will be a match delayed from a previous round of matches between Teplice and Liberec on May 23. The second division will kick off the following week. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek, File)

The top division will resume with a game between Teplice and Liberec on May 23. The second division will kick off the following week.

The decision to restart is in line with UEFA’s recommendation for leagues to “explore all possible options” to complete their seasons.

The restart was made possible as the government has been easing its restrictive measures adopted to contain the outbreak. The Czech Republic has not been as badly hit by the pandemic as some other European nations, including Italy, Spain, France and Britain.

A total of 282 people have died of COVID-19 in the Czech Republic while almost 8,200 have been infected with the virus.