Grassroots football is unlikely to witness an immediate return to normality when Boris Johnson sets out his plans to relieve Covid-19 lockdown measures on Monday.
However, there is hope that some form of organised recreational football will be permitted by the summer.
Around two million people play amateur football regularly, including almost half of 11- to 15-year-olds. Coronavirus restrictions have meant all “non-elite” leagues, with the exception of organised outdoor football for disabled people, have been suspended for weeks.
Mr Johnson is expected to outline the country’s “roadmap” out of coronavirus lockdown restrictions on Monday 22 February.
As i exclusively revealed earlier this month, the Prime Minister will give an update on plans to return all children in England to school by 8 March, while forms of outdoor mixing – such as meeting friends on a park bench – could be in place by the spring. There is also optimism that non-essential shops will also be able to open soon.
But recreational activities may have to wait longer before they are able to return in full. It is understood sports such as outdoor swimming, golf and tennis could begin to reopen within a few weeks. However, football and other amateur contact sports may be remain closed for some time.
That is in part down to the government’s likely insistence that social distancing continues for many months, even though over 16 million people have already received their first vaccine for coronavirus.
Getting schoolchildren back into classrooms is seen as an early barometer for the government to gauge when to relax other restrictions.
It means organised grassroots football is likely to remain banned, although recreational sport among children may be given the go-ahead.
Non-elite football from tiers three to six in the National League system and three to seven in the Women’s Football pyramid have been suspended since the third national lockdown was announced on 4 January.
Regional leagues, indoor and outdoor youth and adult grassroots football, and the Women’s FA Cup – which is currently classified as “non-elite” – are also suspended.
National League North and South may not return
While the National League, National League North and National League South have been granted permission to run during this most recent lockdown, clubs in the regional tiers voted to trigger a two-week suspension of their league fixtures at the end of January.
National League clubs had been given £11m of funding as part of the Department for Digital, Culture Media and Sport’s Sport Winter Survival Package, but in the form of a loan, rather than a grant.
At the start of February all 66 National League clubs were issued voting forms to decide whether or not to complete the 2020-21 season. Clubs in the higher-tier National League voted 13-7 to continue the campaign, but those in the North and South voted 25-18 to end the season early.
In a statement, the National League said: “With the voting procedure now closed, National League North and South fixtures will cease with immediate effect.
“The Board will take the resolution outcome to The Football Association for ratification. This will include dialogue regarding promotion and relegation.”
Not all clubs have accepted the decision, with Dorking Wanderers confirming that they will seek legal advice over the “validity of the resolution”.
“We are at an absolute loss to understand why a resolution would be brought forward that seeks to protect correctly the survival of member clubs, without any consideration being given to the impact on the clubs that need the competition to continue,” read a club statement.
Successive coronavirus lockdowns have caused a spike in activity in individual sports, such as running and cycling. But in the previous lockdown in November, Tory MP Tracey Crouch said it was “wrong” for the government to close all amateur group sporting activity.
“For youngsters playing competitive team sports, there’s no reason why you can’t just suspend competition but allow for training to continue,” she told BBC Radio 4’s Westminster Hour.
“Then there are socially-distanced sports in themselves. To me that doesn’t make any sense. I think golf and tennis are things that bring a great deal of joy to people and should still be allowed to continue.
“I appreciate it’s challenging for the government because once you start opening something, then someone else comes up and says, ‘what about me?’ So I do understand the decision that the government has taken, but I think it’s the wrong decision.”
What about crowds?
As for spectators returning to elite sporting events such as Premier League games and Premiership rugby fixtures, it could be many months before we see turnstiles reopening.
Last summer the government put into place plans to reopen stadia across the country and hosted a number of “test” events to ensure the safety of crowds. Supporters did return for competitive matches in the autumn but even that lasted only a weeks before the third lockdown triggered a blanket ban on crowds.
There is hope that an increase in testing capacity at sporting venues could soon provide a gateway for those who test negative for the virus to gain admittance to events.
But for now fans of professional clubs will have to remain content with watching games on TV and online. Clubs in the Football League are to continue providing their iFollow service for supporters for the rest of the season. And the Premier League recently confirmed all of their matches will be broadcast live in the UK until supporters are granted access back into stadiums.
The most recent broadcast schedule was due to end this month but a fresh fixture list will now be drawn up for games into the spring.
“Details of broadcast selections for March and the rearrangement of previously postponed matches will be announced in due course,” a Premier League statement read.
“The Premier League and its clubs remain committed to an accessible solution for fans. The UK live broadcast arrangements will be reviewed in consultation with clubs and in line with any decisions made by Government regarding the return of spectators to stadiums.”
Follow i sport on Facebook for more Premier League news, interviews and features
More on the Premier League
- Sam Johnstone tells Sam Cunningham why he is finally ready to become a Premier League star
- The making of Timo Werner: How his father’s motivation and ‘scary’ power meant Chelsea star was always destined for the top
- Eric Dier reveals why he stormed into the stands to confront an abusive Spurs fan
- Daniel Storey: How to lose supporters and alienate Messi, by FC Barcelona
- An apology to Man Utd’s Jesse Lingard
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/37sjG9g
Post a Comment