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Impact of coronavirus on professional sports and a list of cancellations
Coronavirus is causing the cancellation of sports across the globe. Here are all the sports that have been impacted so far.
BREAKING: NBA, MLS, NHL, PGA Tour suspend play and MLB delayed due to coronavirus. EPL, The Masters, Bundesliga, Ligue 1 and WSL are all suspended too.
As the coronavirus continues to spread, with the outbreak officially classified as a pandemic by the World Health Organisation on March 11 (EDT), professional sporting competitions across the globe are suffering.
Initially leading to the postponement or cancellation of sporting events in China back in late January, where COVID-19 is believed to have originated, it’s now affecting leagues and tournaments in Europe, Australia and the US. Northern Italy has been the most affected area in Europe for COVID-19. Since the first official announcement on March 4 (EDT) that all Italian sports were to be held behind closed doors until at least April 3 was made, Italy has suspended all sports in the country— and the US isn’t far behind.
What major sports are affected by COVID-19?
Formula One and MotoGP, Six Nations and World Sevens rugby, The Masters and March Madness as well as European soccer leagues are all experiencing delays or cancellations.
The Chinese F1 Grand Prix (GP) scheduled for April was the first to be postponed, with the cancellation of the Australian GP and postponement of the Dutch, Vietnamese, Spanish and Bahrain Grand Prix following soon after. Formula One has since postponed its 2020 season, predicting it to begin in May.
The AFC Champions League postponed matches across the continent, with the exception of one each in Malaysia and Australia. The latter was Sydney FC’s home fixture against South Korea’s Jeonbuk. The start of the Japanese and Korean leagues have both been delayed.
This is all likely to have a trickle-down effect too, with areas such as broadcasting, merchandising and revenue from ticket sales all expected to be significantly impacted. With events like the Euro 2020 play-offs and the 2020 Olympics fast approaching, the situation is being closely monitored on a daily basis.
List of sports cancelled or postponed due to coronavirus
Finder acknowledges that this is not a comprehensive list of every single sport in the world affected.
| Event | Original Date | Impact | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boxing Olympic qualifiers | 3-14 February | Relocated | More info |
| Matildas vs China | 13 February | Relocated | More info |
| Golf USLPGA: LPGA Thailand | 20-23 February | Cancelled | More info |
| Chinese Super League | 21 February | Postponed | More info |
| Golf USLPGA: HSBC Champions | 27 February-1 March | Cancelled | More info |
| Japan’s J.League | 25 February-15 March | Delayed | More info |
| Korea’s K League | 29 February | Postponed indefinitely | More info |
| Swiss Football League | 29 February | All games from this date cancelled | More info |
| Pro14 Rugby | 29 February | Two matches in Italy postponed | More info |
| Football Asian Champions League Match days 1-3 | 2-4 March | Postponed | More info |
| Golf USLPGA: Blue Bay | 5-8 March | Cancelled | More info |
| Davis Cup – China forfeited to Romania | 6-7 March | Forfeited | More info |
| Six Nations: Italy vs Ireland | 7 March | Postponed | More info |
| Strasbourg vs PSG | 7 March | Postponed | More info |
| MotoGP Qatar | 9 March | Cancelled | More info |
| Indian Wells/strong> | 9 March | Cancelled | More info |
| Serie A | 10 March | Cancelled | More info |
| NBA | 12 March | Season suspended | More info |
| NBL Finals | 12 March | Postponed | More info |
| NCAA College basketball tournament ‘March Madness’ | 13 March | Cancelled | More info |
| NHL | 13 March | Season suspended | More info |
| MLS | 13 March | Season suspended | More info |
| MLB | 13 March | Season delayed | More info |
| Tennis ATP Tour | 13 March-20 Apr | Suspended six weeks | More info |
| World Superbikes Qatar | 13-20 March | Played behind closed doors | More info |
| Cricket: Australia vs NZ ODI series | 13-15 March | Cancelled | More info |
| NASCAR | 22 March | Postponed | More info |
| Australian F1 Grand Prix | 13-15 March | Cancelled | More info |
| V8 Supercars Melbourne 400 | 13-15 March | To be rescheduled | More info |
| Golf PGA Tour | 12 March-April 5 | Cancelled | More info |
| NRL | 13 March | Behind closed doors round 2 onwards | More info |
| AFL | 13 March | Behind closed doors round 2 onwards | More info |
| AFLW | 13 March | Behind closed doors inmediately | More info |
| NBL Finals | 13 March | Played behind closed doors | More info |
| English Premier League | 14 March | Suspended | More info |
| Ligue 1 | 14 March | Suspended | More info |
| World Surf League | 14 March | Suspended | More info |
| Bundesliga | 14 March | Suspended | More info |
| English Football League | 14 March | Suspended | More info |
| The Masters | 14 March | Postponed | More info |
| Scottish Premiership Football League | 14 March | Suspended | More info |
| Indian Premier League | 14 March | Postponed | More info |
| F1 Bahrain GP | 14 March | Postponed | More info |
| F1 Vietnam GP | 14 March | Postponed | More info |
| IndyCar | 14 March | Events from 13 March to 26 April cancelled | More info |
| Cricket: India vs South Africa ODI series | 15 March | Postponed | More info |
| Cricket: Australia vs New Zealand ODI | 15 and 20 March | Cancelled | More info |
| Surfing WSL Tour | Ongoing | All March events cancelled | More info |
| Basketball Euroleague | Ongoing | Suspended indefinitely | More info |
| UK Super League | Ongoing | Postponed | More info |
| Cricket Sheffield Shield | 17-20 March | Competition cancelled, NSW given title | More info |
| FIFA | 23-31 March | Postponed | More info |
| WCQ: Australia vs Kuwait/Nepal vs Australia | 26 March, 31 March | Postponed | More info |
| NHL | Ongoing | Season suspended indefinitely | More info |
| Asian Champions League: Perth Glory vs Ulsan Hyundai | 18 March | Postponed | More info |
| MotoGP Thailand | 20-22 March | Postponed | More info |
| Motorsport Formula E Championship | 21 March | Cancelled | More info |
| MotoGP USA | 4-6 April | Postponed to November 2020 | More info |
| Cricket: Australia women tour of South Africa | 22 March-4 April | Suspended | More info |
| Cricket Indian Premier League | 29 March-15 April | Suspended until April 15 | More info |
| Rugby Union World Sevens: Hong Kong | 3-5 April (re-scheduled to 16-18 October) | Rescheduled | More info |
| Masters Golf and PGA Tour | 9 April | Postponed | More info |
| US vs Matildas friendly | 11 April | Cancelled | More info |
| Rugby Union World Sevens: Singapore | 11-12 April (re-scheduled to 10-11 October) | Rescheduled | More info |
| Tennis Fed Cup Finals | 14-19 April | Postponed | More info |
| Canada vs Matildas | 15 April | Cancelled | More info |
| Golf PGA: Maybank Championship | 16-19 April | Postponed | More info |
| Formula1: China Grand Prix | 17-19 April | Postponed | More info |
| MotoGP Argentina | 17-19 April | Rescheduled to November | More info |
| Boxing: Jeff Horn vs Tim Tszyu fight | 22 April | Postponed | More info |
| Golf PGA: China Open | 23-26 April | Postponed | More info |
| SailGP San Francisco | 2-3 May | Cancelled | More info |
| Football Asian Champions League Round of 16 | 18 May | Postponed/rescheduled | More info |
| WTA Tour Xi’an Open | 13-19 April | Cancelled | More info |
| Horse racing: Kentucky Derby | 2 May | Cancelled | More info |
| Golf: US PGA Championship | 14-17 May | Postponed | More info |
| Tennis: French Open | 24 May-7 June | Rescheduled | More info |
| AFL China | 7 June | Cancelled/relocated | More info |
| WCQ: Australia vs Taiwan/Jordan | 4, 9 June | Postponed | More info |
| Rugby League: NZ vs Tonga, Samoa vs Cook Islands | 20 June | Postponed | More info |
Will more sports be cancelled due to coronavirus?
With new cases of coronavirus growing by the day and the situation declared a global pandemic, sports fans are facing a rocky outlook for 2020.
The International Olympic Committee’s official stance is that everything is “business as usual” and athletes should continue their preparations, yet some Olympic test events have already been cancelled. The NFL is doing something similar, where it still plans to hold the 2020 draft in April, but have decided to cut out the public draft events usually held in Las Vegas.
As for the final round of play-offs for the Euro 2020 soccer tournament, semi-finals and finals are scheduled for March 26 and 31, respectively.
What if I have signed up to watch these sports?
Sports fans in the general sense might want to think twice before signing up for new subscriptions with the intention of watching particular tournaments— NCAA, The Masters, F1. While seasons could start up again, there’s no guarantee of what will happen in the next few weeks.
We don’t see any type of refund happening if COVID-19 disrupts your plans for the 2020 season, but crazier things have happened. It’s best to contact customer service and talk through your situation, given the special circumstance.
