Two important news announcements came out of France regarding professional sports cancellations: The F1 Grand Prix and French football Ligue 1 and 2.
The French Football Leagues Will Not Complete their Championships
As the Bundesliga (German football league) is entertaining the idea of going back to playing shortly, the French league decided to cancel the rest of the 2020 championship, naming Paris PSG, champion. This decision came shortly after France’s Prime Minister announced that no sporting events could be held (with or without fans in the stands) before September.
This decision will affect all sport activities. After the end of the lockdown, individual sports practice will be allowed during sunny days, as long as the rules of social distancing are still in place. However, indoor sports or contact sports will not be permitted for a still unknown period of time. For more information on France’s latest news: French news magazine.
It is the second major football league in Europe to put an end to the season. The first one was Dutch Eredivisie who chose to focus on the upcoming year instead of keeping players and fans waiting for a potential resolution that may never have come. In England the Premier League and ELF are still waiting to hear from the government to know when they can resume their activity. Both have made the decision to return and finish the season, as soon as possible. The teams have a plan called “Project Restart” in which they hope they can get back on the fields at some point in June.
No Formula 1 Grand Prix in France this Year
The coronavirus pandemic made another victim. This time, it’s the Formula 1 racing French Grand Prix which had to declare itself defeated. This decision also came in light of the announcement from Edouard Philippe, France’s Prime Minister, to ban all major sports events until September. However, with the travel restrictions in place, the probability that the race could have been held at the end of June was already less than minimal.
The race at circuit Paul-Ricard is now the 10th one to be cancelled in the Formula One World Championship this year, due to the coronavirus. It is the Director of the French Grand Prix who made the announcement, saying that in the light of the government’s decision to ban all sport events till the end of August, they had no choice but to comply and confirm that the Grand Prix would not take place.
It did not take long for the Executives of the Formula 1 Championship to react to the statement. They confirmed that they had kept communication open with the French Grand Prix throughout the pandemic. They expressed sorrow at the idea that there would not be a race this year in France and immediately completed their thoughts by stating that they understood perfectly well the decision of the French government not to hold any sports event at this time. They also confirmed the return of the car race next year at circuit Paul-Ricard.
