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The European football leagues are gradually starting to cancel their seasons. The top leagues of the Netherlands, Belgium, and France have already taken this path. However, most are still waiting for the opportunity to extend the season, an idea also supported by UEFA. However, FIFA medical committee chairman Michael D'Hooghe admits that he is skeptical about the leagues' plans to finish this season. "The world is not yet ready for the return of professional football. I really hope and believe that this will change soon. We must be patient. This is the most dramatic situation in the world since World War II. We must assess it properly and be realistic. Football could only return when it is safe to have contact with others. Football is a contact sport, which we need to avoid the most right now." "We still need to maintain distance from each other. Player testing is a good thing, but this process would have to be repeated constantly. If even one player gets infected, then the whole team or even several could end up in isolation. Are these normal conditions for championship to take place?" - M. D'Hooghe rhetorically asked while speaking to "Sky Sports". "At the moment, we should not think about money, as people's lives are at stake. It is not possible to play "Premier" league matches if players need to keep a two-meter distance from each other. While we do not know when the disease will peak in different countries. We will only be able to talk about a normal situation when we have a coronavirus vaccine," said M. D'Hooghe. The FIFA medical committee chairman also spoke about sanctions for players who spit during matches. "We should start avoiding spitting during games. Why is this considered normal in football, when we do not see it in other sports? We must think about penalties for players who behave this way," added M. D'Hooghe.
