A Premier League meeting on Friday resulted in the indefinite suspension of the English top flight.
A statement read that the league would not resume at the start of May as previously planned, while a proposal of 30 per cent pay cuts for Premier League players was made.
The Premier League also said it would financially support lower leagues in the country, while immediately sending a £20 million donation to the NHS. Follow the latest updates below.
On Thursday, Belgium’s top league cancelled the remainder of their season, with Club Brugge awarded the title.
Brugge had a 15-point lead ahead of the season-ending play-offs. Decisions are yet to be made about relegation places and European spots.
Could the Premier League ultimately follow suit?
Right now, Premier League clubs are more intent on finishing the season than voiding it.
Today's meeting will also see discussions around the ongoing controversy about player wages in the face of wage cuts for non-football staff at clubs.
Several sources have told The Independent that a PFA statement will be made on the situation by Friday evening.
Even former Spurs coach Harry Redknapp came down hard on his old club:
Recent video conferences have merely seen the Premier League season postponed twice, until 30 April, in what have effectively been time-buying moves as they seek to figure out how to complete the season.
It is possible that another postponement of fixtures is coming today, with 30 April seeming too soon for the resumption of the English top flight.
However, with clubs seeking more clarity than that, perhaps a stronger move will be made.
“Some of our lot aren’t the calmest at the best of times,” one high-level Premier League source told The Independent.
The unease is even visible in WhatsApp groups that feature people involved in the decision-making, The Independent understands.
Another senior Premier League figure told The Independent that one group more than 100 contributors and it was hard to keep a sense of perspective with worried messages flying around all day.
There is a feeling among a core of Premier League figures that pushing for hard dates is both unrealistic and totally inappropriate at this time, especially as the next two weeks are expected to be the peak of the United Kingdom’s coronavirus crisis.
Many clubs feel that the Premier League should stick to the current approach, which is to wait and see how things develop for the next few weeks, and then make more solid decisions.
The Independent understands that the tentative plan is try and get some form of football back by June, and it is acknowledged that probably won’t be possible without wide-scale testing.
Certain figures want more clarity due to the possibility of broadcast contracts being broken, and the prospect of the Premier League collectively losing £1.2 billion.
The majority of clubs – as many as 16, at last count – are insistent the 2019/20 season should finish, no matter when that is.
The feeling before the meeting is that there will be a move to have this position hardened today, and kill the idea of voiding the campaign for good.
The Independent has been told that other Premier League clubs are currently discussing similar plans.
The Premier League and EFL have been in talks with the PFA over the last three days about player wages, as they attempt to come up with some sort of collective solution that works for everybody.
Many within football are acutely aware a PR battle is being lost on this, especially as they become a target for politicians. On the other side, however, many players have indicated they are willing to take a cut to help staff at their clubs.
“Given the sacrifices people are making, including some of my colleagues in the NHS, who have made the ultimate sacrifice and gone into work and caught the disease and have sadly died, I think the first thing Premier League footballers can do is make a contribution; take a pay cut and play their part,” Hancock said.
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Some connected to discussions have privately expressed frustration at the length of time the PFA are taking over player wages, and there is a feeling that certain figures involved “don’t get it”.
Sources close to the players’ body insist the matter of player wages is a delicate labour rights issue, which needs to be sorted correctly.
A blanket wage cut is not the same for a recent academy graduate, for example, as it is for a team star. There is similarly an awareness that they are often dealing with clubs worth hundreds of millions, owned by billionaires, so are intent on standing their ground.
Many players are similarly frustrated that they could be made to feel the pressure for decisions that club hierarchies have made. It has already been an issue at Spurs.
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On Thursday, Belgium’s top league cancelled the remainder of their season, with Club Brugge awarded the title.
Brugge had a 15-point lead ahead of the season-ending play-offs. Decisions are yet to be made about relegation places and European spots.
Now, the Dutch top-flight is also facing pressure from teams, who want the campaign to be scrapped.
