English soccer leagues are hoping to resume in just under two months, with a June 6 target date set for EFL clubs for competitive games behind closed doors, according to ESPN. The target date does not include the Premier League.
Matches all over Europe have been off since March, aside from the first division in Belarus, with the coronavirus pandemic greatly impacting the entire continent, resulting in many shutdowns and shelter-in-place orders from national and local governments.
Major leagues across Europe and the world look set to remain suspended for the weeks to come while in Germany, the Bundesliga has seen some teams return to training with hopes of a restart in early May.
The report says the EFL, which includes the Championship, League One and League Two (second, third and fourth divisions in England) would hold a mini-preseason on May 16. After three weeks of training, league matches would then resume on June 6, but all of this depends on how the government goes about handling the lockdown measures. Each team still has nine games to go in the league, with Leeds United leading the way. If lockdown measures are extended in England, that would obviously impact the plans of resuming play.
When it comes to the Premier League, there will be a video conference on Friday with all 20 clubs. They will discuss a schedule for play to resume at some point in the coming weeks, according to ESPN.
Leeds United currently sits in first place in the Championship and looks well on its way to promotion. West Brom, in second place, is also on pace for promotion with the current promotion playoff spots being occupied by Fulham, Brentford, Nottingham Forest and Preston North End.
