Italian sports events suspended indefinitely because of the COVID-19 outbreak

The Italian government has suspended all major sports events across the country because of the COVID-19 outbreak. The Serie A, the Italian top-flight football league, is among the most popular sports leagues in the world. The league already faced empty stadiums because of the COVID-19 outbreak and it will be suspended until at least 3 April 2020. Public events have been banned due to the COVID-19 outbreak, which has affected the Italian Republic significantly. It is unclear what will happen with the international fixtures scheduled to take place in the next weeks.

The defending Serie A champions Juventus Football Club are scheduled to host Olympique lyonnais from France in the prestigious UEFA Champions League on 17 March. The game might be suspended. Juventus defeated Internazionale 2-0 in an empty stadium on Sunday. The world famous Portuguese football star Cristiano Ronaldo from Juventus jokingly applauded the empty stands. It also is unclear what will happen with the European championship for national football teams, which is scheduled to take place in various countries in the summer of 2020. The first match of the tournament is scheduled to take place on 12 June in Rome.