The Covid-19 pandemic outbreak has led to an abrupt interruption of major events on the 2020 calendar including American Football. The US has registered the highest number of Covid-19 cases and the government has taken stern measures to contain the spread of the infection. All crowd events were cancelled and major sporting events halted as officials embarked on the drawing board to devise a means to run sporting events without the risk of spreading the virus. This Pandemic has not spared American football sporting action that was ongoing or planned. That said, there is still some hope to restart the American footballing events in 2020. Let’s look at how some of the football events stand with the current situation:
The NFL
The most popular football leagues and one of the most valuable sporting events in America, has already taken the heat of the Coronavirus. The rampant spread of Covid-19 has seen several NFL plans postponed to later dates. The NFL Draft that was scheduled for April 23-25, 2020 was held as a TV event and there were no spectators like it is on the norm. Although all public gatherings have been cancelled, the NFL is still looking into how they can resume the league without breaching the government regulations. The body will also feed the public with more information regarding their schedule. Both the NFL and NFLPA have settled on delaying offseason programs until a later date. The Hall of Fame Game between Pittsburgh and Dallas is scheduled for August 6, 2020, in Canton, Ohio. Rookie minicamps were announced to begin between May 1-11, 2020 with the Spring league meeting scheduled between May 19-20, 2020. Training camps are expected to follow in the mid of July 2020.
The NFL will reveal its schedule in mid-May. However, the logistics will depend on how the Coronavirus pandemic will continue to transpire. If the initial plan fails to materialize, the NFL can explore various options away from the regular schedule. The body can choose to play the games without fans, postpone the games, or shorten their season.
The Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League was scheduled to start on June 11, 2020, with Edmonton Eskimos welcoming the B.C Lions. On March 30, the sports bulletin caught it that CFL had announced it was postponing the start of full training camps poised for May 17, 2020.
The unrelenting spread of Covid-19 dented the schedule and is now clear the football league will not kick off before early July. All public events had earlier been banned until June 30 and should have included Canadian Football League had they resumed as earlier scheduled. The Canadian football commission has vowed to commit to playing a full season or closer to, but acknowledges they need creative solutions to beat the Covid-19 mitigation challenges.
College Football
Just like other footballing events in America, the College Football league has been forced to halt due to the Coronavirus pandemic. With learning institutions already closed, college football becomes somewhat impossible to keep playing. Unlike the NFL, college football is limited in the options at hand and may be forced to cancel or postpone the college football league until the Pandemic is brought to control.
Some are targeting June 1, 2020, as the day to return to normal practice. The difficulty with college football league is that even though other states may pull their players back to training, other states may find it extremely difficult because of the intensity of Covid-19 measures imposed in their states. In fact, the decision to return to action must be agreed upon within the college football landscape. Most athletic directors, however, believe that the season will likely experience some delay but the length of the delay is subject to debate.
Xtreme Football League (XFL)
The Xtreme Football League, which was inaugurated in 2001 to fill the void left by the NFL during the break, restarted the 2020 series with enthusiasm. Fans were increasingly optimistic of how the game became entertaining and competitive. However, the dream to spark XFL hit the wall when the surge of the CoronaVirus pandemic became untamable. XFL only played five games then suspended after it was deemed unplayable due to Coronavirus pandemic. The XFL has not yet officially cancelled the league for the 2020 season. However, after sending away its employees due to the financial crisis, chances are slim for the league to restart again.
Wrap up
The Covid-19 pandemic has undoubtedly led to disruption to the normal American football schedule around the world. Although respective bodies are working hard to decipher how to go back to normalcy, most of the decisions will largely depend on the success of the containment of the Coronavirus pandemic. Whichever the case, football bodies are optimistic that things will get back on track as soon as possible. Keep checking to get acquainted with American Football events that are still going on.