How are things going in Ukrainian sports leagues due to the coronavirus pandemic?
Football
“In order for the deadlines not to be already very tight, we need a month and a half to complete the championship. If it is not possible to finish the game, then the decision will be made by the General Meeting and submitted to the UAF Executive Committee for approval.” Premier League chief executive Yevhen Dykyi said two weeks ago that the season could be restarted in mid-May. Even though the quarantine is extended, while the plans of the UPL management are to finish the championship, the alternatives are a mini-tournament with the definition of winners and even fixing the results according to the current standings.
Since then, the situation has continued to develop for the worse. At the level of FIFA and UEFA, options are being considered for the resumption of European championships in June-July, given that the coronavirus pandemic is only gaining momentum. It is possible that in the near future representatives of the UPL will meet via videoconference (on April 7 they were supposed to meet in person to hold the election of the president of the Premier League, but they postponed the date of this process to April 24). Football players are in quarantine, some clubs are preparing to cut salaries. But so far no drastic action.
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What did you end up with: Premier League clubs managed to start the second part of the championship, having played matches of the 23rd round. The greatest resonance is the equality of points between Dynamo and Zorya, which, in the event of a complete stoppage of the championship, can lead to serious proceedings over which team will be awarded a place in the Champions League qualification.
Basketball
Unlike the Ukrainian football championship, the basketball championship has already been completed. Moreover, the decision to stop it was made on March 12, when the scale of the coronavirus pandemic in the country was minimal, but at the highest level it was already decided to limit the holding of mass events.
Having stopped the season in the Ukrainian Super League, the basketball federation did not annul its results, fixing the intermediate results as final. Dnepr became the champion of Ukraine, having scored 45 points in 25 matches. The federation did the same with the women’s championship (the winner is Kyiv-Basket). But the Final Four of the Cup of Ukraine was postponed to September. At the same time, a new draw of the Ukrainian Superleague should begin.
What did you end up with: despite the fact that Dnipro became the champion, it was not without scandal. Moreover, the dissatisfaction remained with the representatives of the Dnipro team: the president of the club, Valery Kondratiev, questioned the expediency of such a decision. And the President of the Basketball Federation of Ukraine Mikhail Brodsky, in response, demanded an apology from the leaders of the Dnieper.
Hockey
The Ukrainian ice hockey championship was almost the last to pause after the coronavirus pandemic. On March 16, the teams managed to play the final quarter-final playoff matches and even determine the semi-final pairs: White Leopard was supposed to meet with Kremenchuk, and Dnipro to play against Donbass.
However, the very next day, March 17, the Directorate of the Ukrainian Hockey League and the clubs participating in the UHL decided to suspend the championship. The matches of the semi-final stage of the playoffs, as in the case of the Basketball Cup of Ukraine, were postponed to September. The plans of the leadership of the league to start the new season without delay – in October.
What did you end up with: as in the case of the postponement of matches of the Ukrainian national football team (both friendly matches and the European Championship 2020 itself), the coronavirus pandemic has affected not only the games of the national championship. In late April – early May, the Ukrainian team was supposed to play at the World Championships (in the IB division, the blue-yellow teams would have been the teams of Poland, Japan, Serbia, Lithuania and Estonia). However, it was cancelled.
Volleyball
In the volleyball championship of Ukraine, the situation developed quite differently. On March 16, the Volleyball Federation of Ukraine announced the suspension of the championship due to the coronavirus pandemic and canceled the games until the end of the quarantine period (at that time it was the date of April 3). Moreover, the last matches of the first stage of the season in the volleyball championship were held without spectators.
However, on March 27, the leadership of the volleyball federation made a completely different decision. Taking into account the fact that the quarantine has been extended until April 24, representatives of the executive committee decided, in fact, to annul the results of the season (both in the men’s and women’s Super Leagues). Interestingly, the situation in which the teams of the Ukrainian Volleyball Championship found themselves is similar to that in which the representatives of the UPL are still in: the first stage has been completed, but the teams managed to start the second; a dispute regarding the distribution of places (between Dynamo and Zorya in the Premier League, as well as Prometheus and Chemist in the Women’s Super League).
What did you end up with: the names of the teams that will represent Ukraine in the European Cup arena will be determined at a special meeting of the executive committee of the federation. Another topical issue that will be on the agenda is an increase in the representation of teams in both Super Leagues to 10 participants. Also, the FVU does not exclude the option that, in view of the possible refusal of the participation of other teams in the CEV Cup, Ukraine can be represented by two teams at once – both Prometheus and Chemist.
Handball
Simultaneously with the suspension of volleyball competitions, on March 16, the Handball Federation of Ukraine also announced a forced pause. The teams managed to complete the first part of the championship by that time and, after being divided into two fours, play two matches in the second part.
The handball federation decided to follow a different scenario. The clubs of the men’s Superleague were invited to complete the second stage of the championship, but after it, instead of the semi-final playoff series, immediately play the championship (between the first and second teams) and third place (between the third and fourth teams). Despite the fact that the quarantine was eventually extended until April 24, most clubs in the men’s and women’s leagues at all levels decided to continue the competition.
What did you end up with: not all teams were happy with the decision that was made by the federation. Today, the handball federation responded to an appeal from Motor Zaporozhye, the leader of the men’s Superleague, who proposed to end the season ahead of schedule and recognize the winners at the end of the first stage (they would have become Motor and Galicianka in the women’s championship). However, the FGU committee left the decision to resume the championship in force, stressing that it would meet again to review the competition calendar and find solutions to end the season.
Futsal
On March 11, the semi-final pairs of the Cup of Ukraine were determined. On March 21, DE TRADING from Nikolaevka and Ivano-Frankivsk Uragan, as well as Kherson Prodexim and Kyiv HIT were supposed to meet. The very next day, March 22, the strongest in the semi-final pairs were supposed to meet in the final match.
However, on March 17, a statement on the suspension of futsal competitions appeared on the website of the Futsal Association of Ukraine. Further action regarding the conduct of the competition must be taken by the executive committee of the association.. The grounds for the resumption of the season should be both the disappearance of the threat of infection with coronavirus, and the corresponding announcements about the lifting of restrictions by state and local authorities.
What did you end up with: like football, Ukrainian futsal is related to UEFA. The European organization has shifted the holding of a number of matches to later dates (seven matches of the play-offs of the Euro 2022 qualifying round should take place between June and mid-December, the draw for the Euro 2022 qualifying group round has been postponed from May 14 to July 7). The play-off matches of the European qualifiers for the 2020 World Cup (from June to mid-August) and the qualifiers for the women’s Euro 2021 (for June-September) were also postponed.
Source: Sportarena
