France cancels the 2019-2020 Ligue 1 season amidst COVID-19
The Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 seasons will not resume after the French Prime Minister announced no sporting events, even those behind closed doors, could take place before September. The announcement by Edouard Philippe was made as the French government revealed how it intends to ease coronavirus lockdown restrictions from May 11. The Premier League…
The Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 seasons will not resume after the French Prime Minister announced no sporting events, even those behind closed doors, could take place before September.
The announcement by Edouard Philippe was made as the French government revealed how it intends to ease coronavirus lockdown restrictions from May 11.
The Premier League and other European leagues had been given until May 25 by UEFA to provide plans to restart their season.
But the French top-flight has called an end to their domestic campaign, following a similar move by the Eredivisie in the Netherlands last week.
Phillipe said: “The 2019-2020 season of professional sports, including football, will not be able to resume.
“It will be possible, on sunny days, to practice an individual sporting activity outdoors, obviously respecting the rules of social distancing.
“It will not be possible, neither to practice sport in covered places nor team or contact sports.”
No announcement is yet to be made about whether league leaders Paris Saint-Germain will be awarded the title and how European qualification and relegation will be defined in Ligue 1.
PSG are currently top of the 2019-20 Ligue 1 table with a 12-point lead, while Marseille, Rennes, and Lille make up the top four, with Toulouse bottom of the table.
In Ligue 2, the top five teams are separated by just four points with Lorient, Lens, Ajaccio, Troyes, and Clermont all targeting promotion.
