Changes in international sports schedules due to global COVID-19 outbreak

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New York, Mar 12 (Canadian-Media): Changes, postponements or cancellation  in international sports events have been caused by the new global coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak, media reports said.

 International Sports Management. Image credit: Facebook page

Situation is being monitored by most North American sports leagues, including Major League Baseball, the NBA, the NFL and the NHL while leagues in other parts of the world are either canceling events and playing in empty stadiums.  There was the indefinite suspension of the NBA season after a player tested positive for the virus.

Around the world also there had been cancellations or postponements of events or holding events without spectators in attendance due to the fear of the new coronavirus COVID-19 spread.

Possibility of banning spectators from attending sporting events in Southern California was discussed by Los Angeles County officials  in an attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

There was cancellation of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, one of the top tennis tournaments in the world,  Sunday over coronavirus concerns.

Fans from home for UCLA and USC games will be barred for the foreseeable future.

NCCA said all games would be played in empty arenas and gyms, including the March Madness tournaments for men’s and women’s basketball.

The following details provide a sport-by-sport look at what leagues and federations are doing to address the coronavirus outbreak:

NBA, MLB, MLS, NHL: Only players and essential team employees would have access to all team locker rooms and clubhouses until further notice and that media will not have access to locker rooms. As the week developed, San Francisco and three counties around Seattle announced fans will not be permitted to attend large events, some with 250 or more people and others with 1,000.

NBA: Indefinite suspension of the season by NBA league to take effect after Wednesday night’s games, after a player for the Utah Jazz tested positive for the coronavirus.

The Golden State Warriors became the first NBA team to be ordered to play home games in an empty arena Wednesday after public events were banned by Francisco Mayor London Breed  for the next two weeks because of the coronavirus outbreak. The NBA’s owners and governors held a discussion about the outbreak in a conference call Wednesday

March 7, 2020

MLB: Alternative plans are being discussed with the league by The Seattle Mariners, San Francisco Giants and Oakland Athletics for home games amid bans on large gatherings in the respective cities.

NFL: Developments  related to the coronavirus is being closely monitored by the league  and that it is still planning to hold the NFL draft in Las Vegas on April 23-25.

The NFL’s annual meeting, attended by team owners, general managers and coaches, is still scheduled to be held March 29-April 1 in Palm Beach, Florida (U.S.).

NHL: Being aware of  NBA’s decision to suspend its season, the league said it was in  consultation with medical experts and will issue an update Thursday.

There is bar on NHL employees to travel outside North America for business purposes and that Scouts based in Europe would stay in Europe or be under quarantine upon arriving in North America.

Ohio's orders to hold games with essential personnel, prohibiting  mass gatherings will be abide by the Columbus Blue Jackets.

The San Jose Sharks' next three home games at would be played in SAP Center as scheduled, but those games will be closed to the general public.

NCAA: The men’s and women’s NCAA tournaments would be held without fans as a protective measure against the coronavirus. Also the Pac-12, Big Ten, ACC and Big 12 conferences will hold the remainder of their tournament games without fans.

The Ivy League canceled its basketball championship tournaments, scheduled for Friday through Sunday, and will award its automatic NCAA Tournament bids to regular-season champions Princeton women and Yale men.

In other NCCA-related developments, fans had been barred by from attending athletic events hosted by USC, fans of UCLA had been banned  from attending home athletic events through April 10.

Greece had also barred spectators from Olympic torch lighting because of coronavirus concerns

March 9, 2020

MLS:  MLS  task force was monitoring the coronavirus outbreak and warning had been issued to sports teams in Los Angeles County, including the Galaxy and LAFC,  they may be asked to cancel games or play them in empty stadiums after the county declared a health emergency.

San Jose Earthquakes  will comply with a Santa Clara County ban on public gatherings of more than 1,000 people.

But it was unlear if either the the team or the MLS if the Earthquakes’ March 21 scheduled home game against Sporting Kansas City will be postponed or played in an empty stadium.

The Seattle Sounders postponed of their home game March 21 against FC Dallas and said a rescheduled date will be announced.

LAUSD: The Los Angeles Unified School District has directed its high school principals and athletic directors, according to a memo sent to schools Wednesday,  to ban spectators from sporting events to prevent the spread of coronavirus, .

U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee: There had been a cancellation of the 2020 Team USA media summit, was scheduled to take place at the InterContinental in downtown Los Angeles next week.

XFL: Although the games had neither been postponed nor canceled, but the L.A. Wildcats will play the Seattle Sea Dragons on Sunday at CenturyLink Field with no fans in attendance.

NASCAR: The racing schedule and business operations remain unchanged and it is monitoring the outbreak of coronavirus  .

IndyCar: The league is closely monitoring the situation but does not expect any changes to its season opener, which takes place in St. Petersburg, Fla., on Sunday.

The Long Beach Grand Prix remains set to occur as planned next month despite the coronavirus outbreak, organizers said Wednesday.

PGA: Besides the changes already made  with the PGA Tour-Series China (delayed start to season), its plans schedule remain same unless the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization make recommendations.

California called for ban on large events as virus spreads

LPGA: Three events have been cancelled by the league in response to the coronavirus outbreak. Also events scheduled in Thailand and Singapore were cancelled last month. The Blue Bay LPGA on Hainan Island in China is also off the LPGA calendar.

Their next event, the Founders Cup, is set to be played as scheduled at Wildfire Golf Club in Phoenix from March 19-22.

Santa Anita (horse racing):  The Arcadia-based horse racing track stated that it is monitoring the situation.

Boston Marathon: Although event scheduled for April 20 is still on, but “the situation is fluid,” said Mayor Marty Walsh Tuesday,


International Olympic Committee (IOC) (Tokyo 2020 Olympics): Although the IOC had insisted that the Summer Games in Tokyo, scheduled to begin July 24, will take place as planned, but officials in Greece have barred spectators from the traditional lighting of the Olympic torch, scheduled for Thursday.

Premier League: A contingency plan is in place to ban large gatherings because of the coronavirus spread and has advised teams to pay increased attention to hygiene at stadiums and training grounds.

Wednesday’s Game between Arsenal and Manchester City, scheduled for Wednesday  had been postponed after several Arsenal players went into self-quarantine.

Bundesliga: The German Football League said that Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 will finish their seasons.

Ligue 1: The pregame routines of the French league is being altered because of the band on handshakes among players, coaches and officials until further notice. All matches in Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 will be played in front of a maximum of 1,000 spectators until April 15.

March 9, 2020

Serie A: All sporting events have been suspended through April 3 by Italy.

The Italian soccer league postponed games on its schedule last week but resumed without spectators over the weekend.

Juventus and Inter Milan players were quarantined Wednesday after it was confirmed that Juventus defender Daniele Rugani tested positive for the coronavirus.

La Liga: The Spanish league said Tuesday that matches in the first and second divisions will be played without fans for at least two weeks.

Champions League:  The league said it would organize several matches Valencia vs. Atalanta on March 10 without spectators; Paris Saint-Germain vs. Borussia Dortmund on March 11; Juventus vs. Lyon on March 17; Barcelona vs. Napoli on March 18

Asian Football Confederation: World Cup qualifiers in Asia were postponed until at least September.

WTA: The BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, one of the top tennis tournaments in the world, was canceled Sunday over coronavirus concerns.

The Kunming Open, which was scheduled for April 27-May 3 in Anning, China, and the Xi’an Open in China from April 13-19 have been canceled.

ATP: Two events in China were cancelled and another event in Italy was called off last month amid coronavirus concerns. The BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells was canceled on Sunday.

March 7, 2020

World Figure Skating Championships: The health minister of Quebec, Danielle McCann, announced Wednesday cancellation of the event scheduled in Montreal from March 16-22.

Korean and Japanese baseball leagues: The Japanese baseball league postponed the start of its season, which had been scheduled to begin March 20. The league had been playing exhibition games with no spectators. The South Korean league canceled its exhibition games and has not committed to starting its regular seasons March 28 as scheduled.

Formula One: The Australian Grand Prix, the opening event of the 2020 season, will take place in front of spectators Sunday as planned. The globe-trotting racing series will ban spectators from attending the Bahrain Grand Prix on March 22 and earlier had postponed the Chinese Grand Prix, which was originally scheduled for April 19.

International Ice Hockey Federation: The women’s world championships, scheduled for March 31-April 10 in Canada, have been canceled. Switzerland’s national hockey league has suspended the playing of games through Sunday.

MotoGP: The season-opening Qatar Grand Prix in Doha, which was scheduled for Sunday, was canceled. The second race of the season in Thailand has been postponed, as has the third in Austin, Texas (rescheduled for November).

World Cup Skiing: The competition’s finals in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, scheduled from March 18-22, were called off after an emergency International Ski Federation board meeting Friday.