The whole world is on high alert and it was only a matter of time before football suffered as well due to the spread of COVID-19.

There is no way for sure to tell when exactly the first case of the virus was detected in Wuhan as China had tried to keep it under wraps for as long as they could. However, the world learnt of its outbreak in late 2019 which by then was too late. The current number of infected cases stand at over 119,000 and over 4300 deaths at the time of writing. China, the epicenter of this outbreak, has recently been sharing positive reports on how they have a dwindling number of new cases every day.

However, these reports come at an awkward time as Europe has seen an incredible rise in the number of reported cases.

Italy is by far the worst hit country outside of China right now, with over 10,000 cases and over 600 deaths. On March 4, it was decided that all Serie A games were to be played behind closed doors for 30 days till April 3 in an attempt to curb the spread of the coronavirus. This decree from the government quickly changed on 9 March when the country experienced a record 168 deaths in a single day, forcing the Olympic Committee to cancel all sporting events in the country till April 3.

Such a drastic action was always bound to have consequences on the neighbouring European countries. It was decided that all remaining Champions League Round of 16 matches were to be played behind closed doors with plenty of matches throughout France, Germany and Spain to be played in the same manner. There have been some Europa League matches such as Basel v Frankfurt that had to be cancelled as well.

Despite Brexit, the UK has had to react to the situation as well. Even though there has been no decision made for any of the games in the Premier League to be played behind closed doors, the match between Manchester City and Arsenal had to be postponed again as some of the Arsenal players had been in contact with Olympiakos owner Evangelos Marinakis who had contracted the virus.

Pep Guardiola has shared his views that he would rather games be postponed altogether rather than be played behind closed doors, a view that has been shared by other members of the footballing community. According to Pep, it would make “no sense” to play without the fans as football is “for the people”.

If all leagues were to be suspended however, it does beg the question; what about Euro 2020? Any mass postponement of games in any of the major leagues will definitely encroach onto the Euro timetable.

Already, the stance of the Olympic committee has wavered. It was initially stated that the Olympics would go on regardless but a Japanese organizing committee member has since come out to state that it may be best to postpone the Olympics by 1 or 2 years.

UEFA has indicated that the situation is under constant scrutiny and do not have any other plans as of yet but will follow the orders of any host countries affected.

This will be the first year that the European Championships will be hosted by 12 cities rather than a country or 2. The novelty of this decision may be the very reason that Euro 2020 is cancelled though. With so many different cities involved, the movement of fans in and around Europe will prove to be an absolute nightmare for officials should a situation arise. It is extremely difficult to see any country allowing this to carry on should the situation worsen or carry on as it is and playing the Euros behind closed doors would be something extremely unfathomable.

There have been reports that the COVID-19 situation will last the entirety of 2020 and if it does, the possibility of life without football on top of the current situation may prove the year bleak on the surface. However, this is the best time for the world to band together for a common cause. Overcoming this together will be a true success for humanity and will definitely fill the void left by football should it come to that.

Life should carry on with reasonable steps and precaution in place. Do remember to wash your hands with soap regularly and to immediately isolate yourself or seek medical attention if you are having any respiratory symptoms or a fever. Take all necessary measures to protect yourself and others in these times.

We at Footsy would like to thank all the frontline medical staff and professionals who have been working tirelessly to stabilize the situation all over the world. Your service is truly and deeply appreciated.