Football Bundesliga: The plan against Corona

Florian Tiefenböck studied human medicine at the LMU Munich. In March 2014, he joined as a student and has supported the editorial team with medical articles ever since. After receiving his medical license and practical work in internal medicine at the University Hospital Augsburg, he has been a permanent member of the team since December 2019 and, among other things, ensures the medical quality of the tools.

More posts by Florian Tiefenböck All content is checked by medical journalists.

The Bundesliga will continue on May 16. In a circular, the German Football League (DFL) recommends that players avoid "spitting out of saliva". But that is only one detail of the master plan that the German soccer clubs now have to implement with great effort.

Before the first ghost games this weekend, the clubs in the first and second Bundesliga received a 35-page paper from the German Football League stating which preventive and hygienic measures must be implemented. A Herculean task - and many are afraid of making mistakes in view of the socially charged debate.

A sophisticated plan should help

"Only with the highest level of discipline and meticulousness will we succeed in achieving our common goal of the 2019/20 season finale," warns the DFL in the "Organization circular for special games". In addition to the medical concept of the task force and the manual on diagnostics and monitoring, this organizational plan is the third pillar of the continuation of the season. Here are the most important points:

Organization management

The DFL recommends that the event manager, as the supervisory person, be given overall responsibility for coordinating all organizational and operational tasks. He is also the first point of contact for the hygiene officer.

Formalities

Before a game day, the hygiene officer must submit a completed form to the DFL by 10:30 a.m. at the latest. He thus confirms that all persons reported on the match report sheet who have submitted to the monitoring concept had tested negative for the coronavirus the day before. If the report is not available, the diagnostics project group recommends that the game be discontinued - because of the health risks.

Arrival of the team

The visiting team will arrive in several buses in order to be able to comply with the distance regulations. Home team players should come with cars - preferably individually.

People in the stadium

The arenas are divided into three zones: stadium interior (including playing field, player tunnel and cabins), grandstand and stadium outside area. The host club must ensure that a maximum of around 300 people are present on the entire site at the same time.

A maximum of about 100 people may be in each zone at the same time.The following applies in the interior: In addition to the players, substitute players and referees, ten members of the functional teams, four ball boys (with mouth and nose protection), three photographers, four paramedics, four stewards, 15 people from the areas of TV signal, video evidence and data collection are allowed .

Fans, on the other hand, are not allowed in any of the three zones. The home club on the stadium grounds is responsible for this. Two doping control officers, who have access to the control rooms, also sit in the stands during the game. Greenkeepers are allowed on the lawn before and after the game as well as at halftime.

Cabin life

As many rooms as possible should be made available - in order to maintain the minimum distances - and disinfected in between.

Entry of the team

The teams come onto the pitch separately, including the referee team. There will be no enema children or mascots. A joint setup and - important for the captains - the handshake when choosing a seat are also canceled.

On the bench

Only every second to third place may be occupied. Additional seating and plexiglass partitions are provided. All persons must wear a mask. The trainer may remove the mouth and nose covering to shout instructions - provided that he / she maintains a minimum distance of 1.50 meters from all other people. Substitutes do not need to use a mask when warming up.

Conduct in the game

Cheering together, clapping and hugs are prohibited. Short elbow or foot contacts are allowed. Substitutions and substitutions have to be made without clapping. Please note on as well as next to the playing field: No pack formation. Players should only drink from personalized bottles. And it says: "Avoid the discharge of saliva (spitting)."

After the final whistle

The usual press conferences with the trainers take place digitally. There are only a few interviews - taking into account the hygiene requirements.

mood

There is no simulation of the stadium atmosphere - for example fan cheers from the tape. Gate and entry music, however, are permitted. The empty stands may not be used for large-scale advertising. Cardboard figures or fan banners are allowed if the hygiene concept is taken into account when setting up and hanging up.

Emergency scenario is still up for debate

According to a report in the “Bild” newspaper, the German Football League has also designed an emergency scenario in the event of a season break. If the playing time cannot be brought to an end for legal or medical reasons, the current table should be used. A champion could be chosen with this, there would be two permanent relegated teams and no increase in the leagues. The DFL wants the 36 clubs to vote on these modalities at the general meeting on Thursday.

As a second point, according to the report, the clubs should agree that the season could be concluded by June 30, but also in July if necessary. Numerous player contracts end on June 30th. (ft / dpa)

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