Football during the COVID-19 pandemic

COVID-19 pandemic has affected all areas of human activity. For football fans across the world, one of the most difficult things to accept was the effect the quarantine had on football, which is more than just a sport. Despite the top leagues and international competitions being cancelled, football fans have managed to keep their passion and motivate people to stay home during these horrible times through creating a football challenge.

Top Leagues 

The five biggest leagues in football, which are considered to be the La Liga Santander, Premier League, Ligue 1, Serie A and Bundesliga as well as the Champions League (the biggest tournament in Europe) have all decided to postpone all games due to the outbreak of COVID-19. Personally, I think that was a clever decision as the stadiums in these leagues can host up to 90, 000 people, which could have led to more people getting affected. Since the clubs gain a lot of revenue from the audience, it would not be financially smart to play the games behind closed doors either. In addition, some players and coaches have now been affected and that obviously complicates the situation even further as they have to go into self-quarantine. Many teams have now decided to send all players home and encourage them to stay there in order to avoid getting affected by the disease.

International Tournaments

Both Euro 2020 and Copa America, two huge international tournaments played by countries in a specific region, have now been called off and postponed to 2021 instead. One of the reasons is to be able to finish the domestic leagues. In my opinion, that was also a correct decision since it’s more important to finish the competitions that have already started. Anyways, it is still very sad to see the tournaments being cancelled as they usually bring people together in a way that not a lot of things are able to do. Most football enthusiasts are heartbroken because of this as well as due to the fact that they are now unable to watch football in general.

The Challenge

To still be able to keep football a part of our lives, the famous Instagram page “433” that posts football-related content came up with a challenge that encourages people to stay at home and wash their hands to stop the spread of the virus. It’s called “StayAtHomeChallenge” and the challenge is to wash your hands for 30 seconds while juggling a ball with your feet, or if you want to make it harder, do this with a toilet roll. The challenge went viral in a matter of minutes and you can now see an abundance of celebrities doing the challenge and encouraging their fanbase to do it too all over different social media

As you might have noticed throughout this article, the world of football has stopped, many leagues and tournaments have been postponed and the fans have missed watching their favourite sport. However, that doesn’t stop the football fans enjoying their favourite sport as they have shown by creating a challenge about football that you can do at home. This is proof that football isn’t just a sport for the fans anymore, it’s a lifestyle and a second family.  Do you agree?

Please tell me by replying by messaging me on Instagram at Isak._.magnusson and do not forget to take a look at my clip!  

Written by Isak Magnusson, Lund, Sweden