by Christophe Jost and our on the spot secret agent, plus the Prime Minsiter.
The Bundesliga (1st and 2nd divisions) resume their games next weekend. After a period of planning, political lobbying, medical research, and financial negotiations a plan has been laid out and approved by the German government.
And it is interesting to see that even the NBA is looking at the way they have organised the restart.
Yes, the NBA, one of the biggest professional sports league in the world is watching the administration of football!
What makes this so interesting is that they did not send anyone to England, rather they sent representatives to Germany. Each of us can, of course, decide why this is so but one way to look at this is to say that the Americans have cancelled all their NFL games and want to think about moving forward, so they go to the country that has come up with a clear plan and is putting it into effect.
Which is not actually England.
So, in short here is the concept – at least in outline…
- finish all games until 30.6.2020
- all games to be ghost games
- only a specified number of people will attend the games: players, press, TV, etc.
- regular testing of players must take place
- if a player is tested positive the health department decides what happens….
And this is interesting because Germany is a federation of states and the health departments are state level, so each state can have is own rules. It is similar to the situation in the UK, with each of the three countries and the province of Northern Ireland are able to make their own decisions.
Here is the situation in England…
This means that here England has a real advantage since all the clubs in the Premier League are under the same jurisdiction, and under the same clear set of rules from the central government as the note above shows.
Meanwhile in Germany, just to add a level of complexity, the health department of where the player lives is the one that decides what happens, not the one of where the player works as a footballer.
So a week or so ago there were infections in Cologne. Two players and a physio if we are correctly informed. They were both quarantined, and, from the Bundesliga point of view, that is the end of the story in terms of games.
Now, this week, one player tested positive, was sent into quarantine. Then, at the next tests, two Dresden players tested positive. And there, the whole team was sent into quarantine by the local area health department.
So two cities, two different decisions, following an identical situation.
Curiously, this is the ‘signature’ modus operandi of PGMO, is it not? Same situation in two separate places and then totally different decisions. It is almost as if the German authorities have looked at the English referee organisation and seen it as a blueprint, rather than a dire warning of how not to organise anything.
Indeed it could even be that the PGMO have infiltrated the Bundesliga and are now sabotaging all their efforts to resume the 2019-2020 season without anyone noticing! It could even be the plot of a Mission Impossible movie. And they did not even need to use VAR!
But back to the Bundesliga. To make matters more difficult, Dresden is in line for promotion so will have to play against the team top of the 2nd division, and then in a short competition against the bottom teams of the 1st division. And they have to do this just as the team is getting fit….and then Covid-19 hits.
And there you have it: the best laid out plan doesn’t survive the first enemy contact: the one the Bundesliga has worked so hard to develop and execute, And the whole Bundesliga restart is wobbling and may not be able to get to its end.
Which in essence means that the attempt by the Bundesliga to take over as the top league in Europe – the dominant league with the most TV revenue and the largest audience figures – has been scuppered in one go.
— Matt Lucas HQ (@RealMattLucas) May 10, 2020
And as this was a totally covert operation, the PGMO agents will just come back to Engand – after all they are British citizens, the borders are not closed to them. And they’ll come back assured that the whole of PL owes them the very survival of the PL and it’s standing as the world’s biggest and most-watched football league. Which means they’ll cement their position as the world’s most incompetent – and influential – refereeing body, an unavoidable plague to football and sports.
Of course, we don’t actually have real live evidence that PGMO activists have actually gone to Germany and helped scupper the relaunch of the German league by introducing the virus to two players. But then, on the other hand, most of the time PGMO officials don’t have (or at least do not offer to any members of the public who are interested), real live evidence that fouls and other misdemeanours did or did not take place.
But at least we can see why PGMO are so keen never to engage in any way with the media. It means that no matter what nefarious activities they wish to get involved in (and of course we make it quite clear that we have no evidence that they actually are involved in any nefarious activities in Germany or anywhere else, certainly not, absolutely) no one can ever question them or hold them to account.
As the Prime Minister so clearly said. “Go to work; don’t go to work.”
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I wonder what happened in the past when a player got the regular flu? Nothing in fact. The player was sick, recovered and then came back to his team. And yet according to figures from the WHO each year somewhere between 290.000 (moderate flu season) and 650.000 people died worldwide of the regular flu.
Walter
The problem is Walter, even with a lockdown in a majority of affected Countries the Global death toll is already at least 300,000, and that’s before the figures are adjusted, which usually adds a significant amount.
Honestly, I dread to think what the figures would be if for example just China, the UK and USA hadn’t gone into lockdown.
In my opinion, and it is just an opinion, I think treating this pandemic as a simple Flu Pandemic would of been politically and morally utterly unacceptable, and would of, I believe, in the final analysis, delivered a death toll well in to the millions. It still might.
I realise the economic impact, not to mention the social impact of these lockdowns, is terrible, and may be catastrophic, but I fear these steps being taken to come out of lockdown will be a disaster.
I hope I’m wrong, only time will tell.
The 1918/19 flu pandemic infected something like 500 million people (about one third of the worlds population) . The death toll was estimated to be at least 17 million and possibly as high as 100 million. In comparison this virus is a pussycat!
I am in the government’s declared high risk category by virtue of being both over 70 and having had a heart attack. I am tired of and exasperated by the continuing lockdown. Whilst I may be alive, I’m hardly living and I’m getting tired of the world’s manic overreaction to a significant but not extinction level event.
Andrew
Are you a scientist?
Only asking because being bored shitless doesn’t in itself mean you know whether the lockdown is a ‘manic over reaction’ or not.
If you are a scientist, can you tell me how many more deaths (if any) there would of been had we not gone in to lockdown, and more importantly how you would justify those deaths to the relatives of those concerned.
Andrew,
You say: “Whilst I may be alive, I’m hardly living and I’m getting tired of the world’s manic overreaction to a significant but not extinction level event.”
That is also my feeling a bit. If this is live and the quality of live… then is it still worht living? In Belgium the number of people who have killed themselves has gone up a lot. People living in fear, isolation, without human contact are giving up. My mother in law who is 89 years old has been locked in her room of the elderly home for more than 2 months. She is imprisoned in her room of 18 m² and for how much longer? Nobody knows. The governement is telling us it is for her own good. Well what is good about the fact that when they locked her in she could walk with us to the shops and restaurants. And now because of only being able to walk from her bed to her sofa and back…she has to be pushed around in a wheelchair. So the quality of her live has gone down drastic. Will she ever be able to come out again and be able to walk again? And enjoy from the fresh air, the Sunshine… the marriage of our daughter if it isn’t delayed again in July? She breaths… but I don’t know if she is still alive.
Our governement in Belgium has imprisoned all the people in elderly homes but at the same time has released 1200 thieves, perpetrators, rapists, murderers from prison because of the corona virus. Well I could say that she is save from being raped or killed by one of those released prisoners….
If you are not afraid of the virus, you will die…
If you are afraid of the virus, you will also die…
So just live!
Several of us on here appear old enough to remember 1969…..sadly!
Those who are may remember that there was an outbreak of flu among the Arsenal first team the week before the League Cup Final against Swindon. I recall the vast majority of first choice players were confined to their beds. We asked the authorities for a postponement but, in time honoured fashion, we got no favours from them. The rest, as they say, is history.
It was my second ‘Wembley appearance’ having watched us lose to Leeds in the same Final the previous year. It got better for a few years and I was fortunate enough to be at Highbury to see us win our first European trophy in 1970.
I enjoyed those days immensely. Not for reasons of brazen nostalgia (the football wasn’t nearly as good as Wengerball) but because the fans had no expectations of glory and didn’t moan constantly the minute we didn’t win a game.
Mikey
“Several of us on here appear old enough to remember 1969…..sadly!”
Alas you can, as you may of gathered from previous posts, put me in that wrinkly category.
I have reminisced on here a few times about 2 of the games you mention.
My first EVER Arsenal match was the League cup final against Swindon. I clearly remember watching every second sat upon my dear departed and much missed fathers shoulders.
Despite the result I still fell in love and in love I remain.
My 2nd match was the Fairs Cup triumph. It has recently been remembered on Arsenal.com by a few of the participants accompanied with some old black and white footage.
That old black and white footage, as great as it, just doesn’t do justice to what was an incredible atmosphere, as you will certainly attest to. Even though I was just 10 years old that night is still vivid in my memory.
I was sat on the railing by the old half time score board (to the right of the North bank as you look at it from the pitch), that ran round the corners of the ground at pitch side. All the second half action unfolded right in front of my star struck eyes.
What a night.
As you suggest, watching football, or more specifically watching Arsenal, was a completely different experience back then. Yes you did have the moaners, but I was never one, by and large, once I left the game, got the latest defeat out of my system, all I talked about was next weeks match.
But here’s the thing, back then the moaners stopped going. Again I have mentioned on here a few times one particular mid week game in the late70’s early 80’s against Norwich that was played out in the pouring rain, ended 0 – 0, and was watched by a miserly 24,000 I think it was. Oh the joy !!
But today, what with fans being by and large ‘committed’ to going due to having already paid for their season ticket, the ‘moaners’ that would of simply stopped going now still go but moan even more.
I don’t think human nature has actually changed that much, it’s just the way we attend football matches has.
Keep safe.
This is that sad day of which I speak. February 28th 1978, Arsenal 0-0 Norwich.
As you will see we had some absolute legends playing that particular night. Shit happens.
https://www.11v11.com/matches/arsenal-v-norwich-city-28-february-1978-84249/
Despite that terrible attendance, relatively speaking we didn’t have a bad season, though ultimately ending up trophy less.
We ended that season in 5th spot.
We lost to Liverpool in the League Cup semi final, losing the 1st leg 2 – 1 at Anfield and drawing 0 – 0 at Highbury in the 2nd leg.
We lost 1 – 0 to Ipswich Town in the FA Cup, in the first of 3 consecutive finals.
Memories.
@ Mikey and Nitram
Regarding the Swindon League Cup Final I also was at that final but what you didn’t mention was that the horse of the year show took place at Wembley the week before the final .
The horses collapsed/ruined the the drainage system , so with a lot of players having had the flu along with a waterlogged pitch it was a great leveller .
Also attended the Fairs Cup Final against Anderlecht the match took place in pouring rain , as we all know we won , I got on the pitch after the game celebrating the win and stayed there till the players came out into the directors box .
I couldn’t believe how much mud I had on my shoes and jeans , happy days
Steve Vallins
I certainly remember what a quagmire the pitch was for the League Cup final. And as you say, such a pitch is always a great leveller.
I cant say I have any recollection of how we played, who played well and who didn’t, except for one, and that was, if memory serves, how Ian Ure got the majority of the critisism.
I must admit I don’t recall pouring rain for the Fairs Cities (to give it it full name) Cup Final. I must of got soaked as the part of the North bank we always occupied was uncovered.
However wet it was, was never going to make jot of difference to what was a wonderful night.
I/we didn’t go on the pitch but we did stay to see the revelry, the pitch ‘invasion’, and the players merrily jogging around the pitch with trophy held high.
@ Nitram & Steve
I’d forgotten about the horse of the year show……..not my thing really. I’d also forgotten about the half-time scoreboards around the edge of the pitch too. I remember also my late uncle who was a Senior Steward for many years talking very proudly about the traditions of Arsenal, one being the fact that Highbury had no advertise hoardings around the pitch like every other club. That seems a century ago……well it probably is 🙂
Btw Nitram, I was never in any doubt that you were a wrinkly 🙂 although I’m now slightly disappointed to discover you’re actually younger than me lol. In 1968 I was a highly mature 13 year old 😉
Mikey
Was it THAT obvious ??
Listening to you guys I could be the youngest guy in the room !!! Let me tell you, that hasn’t happened for a very long time.