The Korean FA Cup will kick off on May 9, a day after the top-flight K-League begins its 2020 season which was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Yonhap news agency reported on Tuesday.
The tournament, originally scheduled to begin on March 14, will be held without spectators in attendance during the early rounds, the agency quoted the Korean Football Association (KFA) as saying.
The first round will feature 32 semi-pro and amateur clubs from the lower divisions. The 16 winners will meet six more teams from the K3 League and 10 clubs from the K-League 2 in the second round from June 6.
The quarter-finals will be held July 29 and the semi-finals are scheduled for Oct. 28.
The date of the two-legged final will be decided later, the report said, adding that fixtures could change depending on the situation with the outbreak which has infected more than 10,000 people and killed nearly 250 people in the country.
South Korea was among the first countries to bring the virus under control, prompting the K-League to announce its decision to start after more than two months of delay.
The league said in a statement http://kleague.com/contents/news/16937 on Monday that 10 overseas broadcasters -- mostly in Asia and Europe -- had bought rights for the season.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru, editing by Ed Osmond)
