Spanish govt says no guarantee football resumes before summer
Spain's health minister Salvador Illa said Sunday it will be "imprudent" to promise the football season would restart before the summer as the united states took steps to ease one of the world's toughest coronavirus lockdowns.
"I can't tell you at the moment if professional football will likely be able to restart its activities prior to the summer. It would be imprudent on my part," he said during a daily briefing on the coronavirus pandemic.
The minister sounded an email of caution over La Liga plans to test players for the virus before time for training and resuming a season suspended on March 12, saying giving priority to footballers might breach government policy.
"The diagnostic tests of any sort must be made available to the regional governments," Illa said.
Before players can return to the pitch they have to endure COVID-19 screening tests. They will then continue being monitored frequently.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced Saturday that Spaniards will be allowed out for exercise and also to take walks from next weekend, with the state of emergency extended this week until May 9.
Unlike almost every other countries, since imposing a lockdown on March 14, Spain hasn't allowed anyone out for walks, jogs or bike rides, allowing them to leave home and then buy food or medicine, briefly walk your dog or for a medical emergency.
With an increase of than 23,000 coronavirus fatalities, Spain gets the third highest death toll on the globe after the USA and Italy.
