UEFA Resolve to Complete All European Club Seasons by June 30th

We know Premier League football is on hold until at least April 4th and now, following a meeting of the various European football governing bodies with UEFA, we know that the goal is to finish the season by June 30th.

This following Tuesday’s meetings of European football’s power brokers, which resulted in the release of a UEFA resolution to “complete all domestic and European club competitions by the end of the current sporting season.”

It’s hardly a surprising date, and the phrasing rather gives the game away—namely, that nobody involved wants to try to figure out what happens if the season isn’t completed and player contracts and loans have expired.

Getting the games all in before that happens wouldn’t solve every problem—for an example close to Anfield, Liverpool’s new deal with Nike kicks in on June 1st, a month before the end of the sporting season for UEFA and the EPL.

Still, it would at least solve the biggest problem, which would be those questions of what happens to players who are out of contract or out on loan if we get to June 30th and the 2019-20 season hasn’t had a bow put on it.

The only question, then, is whether the goal is viable, and with six rounds of European play left and nine of the Premier League, at least eight weeks are likely needed to fit it all in—and that’s without worrying about the FA Cup.

That in turn puts the latest possible restart date on the weekend of May 9th. If the situation is such that the games can begin again at that point in some manner, it’s likely the season can be completed by June 30th.