Italian Sports Minister Vincenzo Spadafora has dealt a severe shock to the Italian clubs and local league fans, after he said that it is impossible to set a date for the resumption of the league competition, at a time when the country continues to address the emerging Corona virus. This statement opens the door to canceling the season that has been suspended since last March, especially since the decision on the fate of the league should take place during these days.
"We all hope to be able to resume the championship competitions regularly, but at the same time it is impossible to set a specific date," Spadafora said during an accountability period before the Italian parliament.
"We must wait for data on the development of the infection in the next two weeks. The country has just begun two days ago the gradual phase of quarantine relief. Only then can the government decide."
Football activity has stopped in Italy since the tenth of last March due to the outbreak of the "Covid-19" epidemic, which has killed more than 29 thousand people in the country so far.
Players have been allowed to return to individual training at the sports centers for their teams this week, but they have to wait until May 18 for the green light to do team training.
It is scheduled that the Italian Football Federation will meet tomorrow with the governmental technical technical committee of the government to discuss the medical protocol of group training, noting that the federation postponed a meeting scheduled for Friday to discuss ways to complete the league, pending obtaining additional information from experts in the health field.
The minister considered that the pressure to resume football "is completely incomprehensible to millions of Italians concerned about their health and work," adding that "setting the date for the resumption of the tournament now contradicts the need to define steps based on the results of the data (the development of infection)." "I remind you that the sure dates for the time being are those of the countries that decided to finalize their tournaments."
France and the Netherlands have permanently suspended their championships, while the Belgian government has banned any sports activity until July 31. The European Union has given the game (WIFA) a deadline for the local federations until May 25th to inform it of the possibility of resuming the local championships, and if so, determining the date and order in which the matches will be completed.