The Professional League: If two players are infected with "Corona", the match will not be postponed

The UAE Professional League issued a circular for professional clubs based on the protocol approved for the 2020-2021 sports season, which included a clarification stating that the Covid-19 pandemic will not be considered a force majeure as long as there is no reason to prevent matches during the pandemic, except in the event that the competition is suspended or canceled. By the competent authorities that result in the impossibility of holding matches.

In light of this, the Association decided the following:

Holding the match

1- Monitoring positive cases during a Covid-19 virus examination in the team will not be considered a reason for postponing match dates.

2- If there are 20 players, including the goalkeeper, who are eligible to participate in matches as a result of their negative Covid-19 virus examination, the club can play matches according to the competition schedule.

In all cases, 20 players are not required to be registered in the match list, and the match will be held according to the numbers stipulated in the competition regulations and the Football Law.

3- The deadline for submitting the examination results on the website of the Emirates Football Association is twelve in the afternoon on the day of the match.

In the event that the club fails to deliver the results of the examination on the date specified above and even an hour and a half before the date of the match, the match will be held and the offending club will be referred to the Disciplinary Committee to take the penalties it deems appropriate for not delivering the examination results within the specified time limit, and in all cases it is not necessary. As a reason for losing the game.

4 - As an exception to Article 3 above, the club has the right to amend the players checklist and complete the list in the event that positive cases appear for the players, even an hour and a half before the start of the match, in which case the team will not be referred to the Disciplinary Committee.   

5- In the event that the club fails to provide 20 players, including the goalkeeper, as a result of their negative Covid-19 virus examination to choose the final match list or provide them after the dates specified above (within less than an hour and a half from the date of the match), the team is considered losing the match with the result 3/0.

Cancellation or non-completion

As for the cancellation or non-completion of competitions, the following has been decided:   

1- The decision to cancel or not complete the season for reasons related to the Covid-19 pandemic is made based on the decision issued by the competent authorities in the country. 

2 - In the event that the decision of the competent authorities in the country is before the end of the first round, a decision is taken to cancel the season completely without crowning the champion or relegating any team to the first division league, and the ranking of the teams is not calculated for any reason.

3- In the event that the decision of the competent authorities in the country is after the end of the first round, the final ranking shall be calculated according to the last arrangement after stopping the competition, provided that all teams are equal in the number of matches played.

In the event that the number of games played is not equal, the final standings are calculated according to the last round in which all the teams were equal in the number of games played. The champion of the competition is crowned, the teams that have been relegated to the First Division, the teams participating in the AFC Champions League and all other effects, whether financial, administrative or otherwise. And in all cases, to avoid any doubt, the points of the teams will not be calculated in any round that has not completed all the matches specified in the final ranking of the participating teams.

 Regulations for competitions and the

Association clarified that the provisions of the circular are considered an integral part of the Association's competitions regulations for the 2020/2021 sports season, and in the event that any text in the competition regulations conflicts with the text of the circular, the provisions of this circular shall apply.

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