In a statement Monday, March 16, Poland’s Liga Futbolu Amerykańskiego, LFA announced the suspension of all football activities.
The LFA joins the growing list of leagues throughout the world helping to slow down the spread of the coronavirus, COVID-19.
Marcin Wyszkowski, President of the Board of the Polish American Football League
“Unfortunately, due to the growing threat and the threat of epidemiological in Poland, after consulting representatives of the LFA clubs, the Board of the Polish American Football League decided to suspend the start of this year’s season until further notice. We will monitor the situation in our country and games at all levels will start only when we are sure that the health and lives of both team representatives and American Football fans are not at risk.
Poland has sealed its borders, closed malls, and schools and banned gatherings of more than 50 people. And yet experts say the real fight against coronavirus has only just begun. Poland has confirmed 150 cases of the virus on Monday morning but Health Minister Lukasz Szumowski warned of the exponential growth of the virus:
“We must expect a four-digit number of people infected with coronavirus this week.”
The LFA had been scheduled to kick off on March 28.
A 21-year-old Spanish football coach has died from coronavirus, having already, unknowingly been suffering from a form of leukaemia.
Francisco Garcia, a youth team coach at Malaga-based club Atletico Portada Alta, had an unknown pre-existing health condition that resulted in him being more vulnerable to the virus than usual for an individual of his age, though he was only informed of having cancer after going to the hospital with symptoms of coronavirus.