When your internal calendar is largely synced with the footballing one, it’s difficult to wrap your head around the fact that we’re now approaching mid-June. In the fantasy world before COVID-19, we’d see Euro 2020 begin on Friday; in the actual COVID-19 world, we’ll see the Premier League return Wednesday with a pair of fixtures that were originally scheduled for March 11.
BARCELONA — After an almighty push by all parties concerned, Spain's LaLiga roars back into action next week after a three-month pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with matches taking place every day and with everything to play for.
The season resumes on Wednesday in bizarre circumstances with the second half of a Segunda Division match between Rayo Vallecano and Albacete that was abandoned in December due to offensive chanting.
Atlético Madrid's long-serving assistant coach Germán "Mono" Burgos has announced he is leaving the club at the end of this campaign after over eight years in order to become a head coach.
"At the end of this season I will start my journey as a first team coach. With more than 10 years experience in LaLiga I think I am perfectly capable of guiding a team's destiny," Burgos said in a video on Atlético's website on Wednesday.
Barcelona star forward Lionel Messi said that both life and soccer have forever been changed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
COVID-19 is responsible for the deaths of 370,000 people worldwide as of Sunday afternoon. It has also wreaked havoc with the sports landscape for much of 2020.
LaLiga, Spain's top-flight soccer league, is set to resume on June 11, albeit without fans in the stands. The first match on the slate will feature the Seville derby between Real Betis and Sevilla.
With Bayern Munich taking what’s almost certainly an unassailable lead at the top of the Bundesliga, the La Liga return date of June 11 can’t come soon enough for those thirsting for a bit of sporting drama in their lives. With 11 matches still to go for every side in Spain’s top division, the La Liga return schedule highlights the twists and turns we have lying ahead.
MADRID — Spanish soccer's top-flight will resume after a three-month pause due to the coronavirus pandemic on June 11 with the local derby between Sevilla and Real Betis, the government's department for sport (CSD) said in a statement on Friday.
Meanwhile, president Javier Tebas has outlined LaLiga's plans to offer viewers the chance to hear virtual crowd noise during the matches, which will be played without supporters to prevent further spread of the virus.
Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale says he is still confused that his love for playing golf has caused such a stir in Spain and questioned why other elite sportsmen are not criticized for playing the game.
Despite winning four Champions League titles with Real and scoring crucial goals in three finals, Bale still divides opinion in Spain due to a perceived lack of commitment as well as a poor injury record, which the Spanish media have often blamed on his passion for playing golf in his spare time.
LaLiga president Javier Tebas has said he hopes a derby between Real Betis and Sevilla will kick the Spanish top-flight season back into action on June 11 after being paused for three months during the coronavirus pandemic.
"There is a possibility that there is a game on June 11, which would be the only match that night and perhaps there will be a tribute to all the people who have died (from the virus)," Tebas told Spanish television network Movistar on Sunday. "I hope that date can be confirmed and we would like the game to be the Seville derby, kicking off at 10pm."
BARCELONA — Spanish soccer's top flight division La Liga can return to action from June 8 after being disrupted by the novel coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Saturday.
All organised soccer in Spain was provisionally suspended on March 12 although clubs in the top two divisions have since returned to group training.
La Liga has yet to officially confirm a date on which it will resume, although its president Javier Tebas had said previously he hoped the season could do so from June 12.