French Government Pushing For 'Premier League And Other Major Leagues To Cancel 2019-20 Season'

French President Emmanuel Macron is reportedly eyeing up plans for his European counterparts to stop top-flight leagues from resuming amid the coronavirus pandemic.

France on Tuesday announced that Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 would not resume as the country enforces a ban on all sporting events until September.

And French newspaper Le Parisien now reports that Macron wants Germany, England, Spain and Italy to stop professional sports for the 2019-20 campaign from going ahead.

Dutch league Eredivisie and the Belgian First Division A have decided to cancel their 2019-20 seasons due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

According to Le Parisien, Macron is keen for the Premier League, Bundesliga, Serie A and La Liga to follow in the same decisions made by Belgium, France and the Netherlands.

The publication added that French sports minister Roxana Maracineanu has already entered into 'bilateral talks' with European counterparts to push ahead with the plans.

According to reports, Maracineanu has shared her stance with Italy and Germany's leading authorities and plans to speak with those in power in Spain on Thursday.

Italian teams are expected to resume training from 4th May as the country starts to lift some restrictions in the country.

However, Italian sports minister Vincenzo Spadafora has refused to rule out the possibility that the country could follow France and cancel the Serie A season.

"The decisions that are in the process of being taken in other countries, like in France, could push Italy to follow this position, which could then become a European position," he said on Wednesday.

Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi revealed that the club respected the country's decision to end their domestic season.

However, the PSG chief has admitted that the defending French champions will continue to play in the Champions League should UEFA resume the competition.

Meanwhile, former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan has called for the Premier League season to be scrapped.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Football News, Football, Serie A, Premier League, England, Germany, Spain, France, La Liga, Italy, Bundesliga

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

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