What happens to Serie A in case it stops: the three scenarios

09 mar 2020

Italy has been dealing with the Coronavirus outbreak for some time now and the situation has been worsening day by day on the Apennine peninsula. The unsettling situation has also had a strong effect on activities within the country, including football and Serie A as a whole, with many matches either postponed or played behind closed doors.

As we informed you this morning, it seems rather likely that the league campaign will be suspended during tomorrow's meeting of the Federal Council of Italy. But what would happen after that?

As pointed out by La Repubblica (via calciomercato.com), there are three possible scenarios on the table in case Serie A is suspended. The first scenario would be requesting UEFA for a postponement of the European Championship scheduled for this summer, with the missing games played in the summer instead of the continental competition.

If UEFA says no (currently no one in Nyon is open to the possibility of postponing the European championship), the second option would see the obligation to find an alternative schedule, which would be extremely difficult and would likely mean that teams would have to play every two days - a solution unacceptable for Serie A clubs.

Finally, the idea of declaring the league campaign concluded could be evaluated, choosing not to assign the title or 'freezing' the current league table. It would be up to the Federal Council to decide the potential outcome.