English, French football seasons suspended over Coronavirus

• Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, Chelsea player Callum Hudson-Odoi test positive for virus

Premier League and English Football League (EFL) matches have been suspended until April 3 at the earliest in light of the coronavirus outbreak.

Ditto for the French football season which has been suspended “until further notice”, a source close to the LFP told AFP on Friday.

The Football Association, the Premier League, the English Football League, FA Women’s Super League and FA Women’s Championship have all agreed to call a halt to competitive action with immediate effect. The news was confirmed in an EFL statement, according to The Telegraph.

The decision was confirmed on Friday morning after Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta and Chelsea player Callum Hudson-Odoi tested positive for the virus.

A statement from the EFL read: “The FA, Premier League, EFL and Barclays FA Women’s Super League and FA Women’s Championship have collectively agreed to postpone the professional game in England until 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.

“The postponements include all matches in the Championship, League One and League Two, as well as all academy and youth team fixtures.

“In addition, clubs are being advised to suspend indefinitely all non-essential activities which include, but are not limited to, player appearances, training ground visits and fan meetings.

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“Whilst the EFL board has continued to take the advice and guidance offered by the Government and its health advisors, emerging developments mean now is the time to implement football’s contingency plans in response to the crisis.

“A further update on these plans will be given post an EFL board meeting next week.

“This decision has not been taken lightly, but the EFL must prioritise the health and well-being of players, staff and supporters while also acknowledging the Government’s national efforts in tackling this outbreak.”

In France, the LFP, which runs the elite Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, has taken a “unanimous” decision to stop playing with immediate effect following an emergency meeting on Friday, having previously said games would continue to be played behind closed doors until mid-April.

The move means France follows other leading European leagues in closing down the season, with all sport in Italy stopped until early April and the next two rounds of matches in La Liga in Spain postponed.

In addition, the Dutch and Swiss domestic leagues have been put on hold until the end of the month, while Portugal has announced its top two divisions will be suspended “indefinitely”.

Paris Saint-Germain’s Ligue 1 match at Strasbourg last weekend was the one game in France to be postponed due to the extent of the outbreak in the east of the country, but the situation has since deteriorated.

COVID-19 has already killed 61 people and infected almost 2,900 in France.