Europe

After four seasons in the Dutch capital, Hakim Ziyech has seen his Ajax career come to a premature conclusion thanks to the global outbreak of COVID-19. 

The Eredivisie season was ended without crowning a champion for the first time in the competition's 64-year history after prime minister Mark Rutte banned all matches until September. The league announced that the table will be finalized as it currently stands and, in addition to not crowning a winner, no teams will be relegated or promoted. 

Outside of the Pentagon recognizing the existence of UFOs, this week’s strangest saga has been the story of Mike Tyson’s weed company trying to purchase the naming rights to Barcelona’s legendary Camp Nou stadium.

While Americans are still cooped up inside wondering when they'll be able to leave their homes and enjoy some fresh air, other countries are easing back into normalcy. 

This past weekend, Spain allowed children under the age of 14 to go outside and play for the first time in six weeks — with some restrictions of course. Children must be wearing masks and obeying social distancing rules, as well as being accompanied by one parent for one hour of play.  

FIFA has proposed that teams should be allowed to make up to five substitutions per match, instead of the usual three, as a temporary measure to help cope with potential fixture congestion in the aftermath of the novel coronavirus outbreak. 

Football has been at a standstill since mid-March but many leagues and federations are still hoping to complete the season but to do so they would have to cram fixtures into a shorter period than usual once play re-starts.

Balls and pitches will need to be sterilized frequently when Spanish soccer returns in order to minimize the chance of players getting infected by the novel coronavirus, a leading doctor in the sport has said. 

Spanish soccer has been on hold since March 10 due to the pandemic and stakeholders have been drawing up plans to complete the current season in a bid to avoid catastrophic financial losses, although a date for a return is yet to be set. 

Fiorentina owner Rocco Commisso has said the club will not try to stop talisman Federico Chiesa should he decide to join Juventus. 

"Chiesa must decide and, if he wants to leave, I won't stand in his way, as long as the amount is right ... If he wants to go to Juve, there are no vetoes for certain clubs," Commisso claimed. 

The Spanish soccer season, halted like most major sporting competitions due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, is unlikely to return until the summer, the country's health minister Salvador Illa said on Sunday. 

It’s been six weeks since the English Premier League suspended play due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. Arsenal has been out slightly longer, having gone into self-isolation after manager Mikel Arteta tested positive for COVID-19 on March 12. But Arsenal training is set to resume on shortly, even though England has yet to lift stay-at-home measures in the country.

Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Diogo Jota won the ePremier League Invitational title for his club on Saturday after beating Liverpool fullback Trent Alexander-Arnold with a golden goal in the final after the match ended 1-1 in regular time.

A number of top-flight players had signed up to represent their clubs in the virtual tournament to generate funds for Britain's National Health Service (NHS) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

MANCHESTER — English cricket's governing body said it has been given the leading role for all sport in the country, including soccer, in examining how to create 'bio-secure' venues as leagues look for ways to restart their competitions without fans.