England’s top division and the rest of the country’s professional structures have been thrown into disarray as efforts to contain Covid-19 continue
The Premier League will be on hold for a number of weeks due to the spread of the coronavirus Covid-19 through a number of its clubs.
The decision was made on Friday March 13 following collective agreement with the Football Association, the English Football League, the FA Women’s Super League and FA Women’s Championship.
Initially, the evening beforehand, the Premier League indicated that games would go ahead as planned, but reversed the decision following the confirmation of a number of cases at clubs.
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So, which games are postponed due to coronavirus, when will action resume and what will it all mean for the Premier League? Goal brings you everything you need to know.
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Which Premier League games are postponed due to coronavirus?
The Premier League has postponed the next two matchdays (gameweeks 30 and 31).
That means matches which were scheduled to be played on March 14, March 15, March 16, March 20, March 21 and March 22 will not go ahead on those dates.
Notable games to fall on these dates include the Merseyside derby between Liverpool and Everton at Goodison Park, Tottenham’s game against Manchester United in London and Chelsea vs Manchester City.
You can see the games that are postponed below.
| Date | Match |
|---|---|
| March 14 | Brighton vs Arsenal |
| March 14 | Watford vs Leicester City |
| March 14 | Bournemouth vs Crystal Palace |
| March 14 | Manchester City vs Burnley |
| March 14 | Newcastle United vs Sheffield United |
| March 14 | Norwich City vs Southampton |
| March 14 | Aston Villa vs Chelsea |
| March 15 | West Ham vs Wolves |
| March 15 | Tottenham vs Manchester United |
| March 16 | Everton vs Liverpool |
| March 20 | Tottenham vs West Ham |
| March 21 | Chelsea vs Manchester City |
| March 21 | Newcastle United vs Aston Villa |
| March 21 | Norwich City vs Everton |
| March 21 | Burnley vs Watford |
| March 21 | Liverpool vs Crystal Palace |
| March 22 | Leicester City vs Brighton |
| March 22 | Manchester United vs Sheffield United |
| March 22 | Southampton vs Arsenal |
| March 22 | Wolves vs Bournemouth |
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When will the Premier League return?
The postponement to the Premier League will last until April 3 at the earliest.
Gameweek 32 matches are currently scheduled to be played on April 4, April 5 and April 6, so the action could potentially resume then.
However, any return date will depend on how things develop with regard to the coronavirus containment efforts.
The FA’s statement said: “The FA, Premier League, EFL and FA Women’s Super League and FA Women’s Championship have collectively agreed to postpone the professional game in England until Friday 3 April at the earliest.
“This action, which will be kept under constant review, has been taken due to the increasing numbers of clubs taking steps to isolate their players and staff because of the Covid-19 virus.”
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How will the coronavirus suspension impact the Premier League?
The postponement of two gameweeks will mean that space will have to be found after the normal end of the season, which would ordinarily have concluded in the middle of May.
The FA has said that “all parties are committed at this time to trying to complete this season’s domestic fixture programme and are liaising to establish appropriate options to do so.”
Gameweek 38 is provisionally scheduled to take place on May 17, while the FA Cup final is due to be played on May 18.
The Champions League final, meanwhile, is scheduled for May 30, though UEFA, having already postponed Champions League and Europa League fixtures, may be forced to delay that as well.
Either way, it leaves a short window in which the postponed gameweeks can be fulfilled.
Of course, Euro 2020 is also on the horizon – ostensibly due to kick off on June 12 – and English football authorities will also have to bear this timing in mind should things improve in the short term.
There has also been some confusion regarding what will happen if the Premier League schedule is completely and irrevocably compromised by these disruptions.
Crowning the league champions – could Liverpool be denied their glory? – is one such consideration, as are issues such as UEFA qualification places and relegation (as well as promotion from the Championship).
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