Dutch football lays out plan for the rest of the season

With nine match days remaining in the Eredivisie, the top level of Dutch football, the country's football association, KNVB, said it is examining all options for the final 162 games left to play in the season. All matches were suspended as the coronavirus pandemic gripped the country, which included a ban on all gatherings of a hundred people or more, and the shutdown of all sports clubs and their facilities.

KNVB chair Just Spee said the organization has three different scenarios planned for the rest of the season. “The first one is we play the rest of the season, with the crowd. The scenario that comes after that is we play a part of the season without the crowd, and if that does not work either then you get to the point that you have to cancel the games," Spee told NOS Studio Sport.

Spee said he was watching the developments in Italy closely, where the coronavirus has led to a wider shutdown of public life than in the Netherlands. “They are saying there won't be any football until at least October. If that is going to be the same situation here then [the season] is finished."

The Eredivisie and lower levels of football were suspended on March 15 through at least April 6 due to the coronavirus. Each team is set to play nine rounds of matches on the Eredivisie table, which totals 162 matches, followed by playoffs to determine European tournament competitors and relegated teams.