Ghost games to continue in the Bundesliga until the end of October

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to be felt by the Bundesliga, with a possible return of fans now postponed at least until the end of October.

The DFL and the 36 Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga clubs were hopeful of a partial return of spectators when the new season gets underway next month. But now after a meeting between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the heads of state governments, it has been decided that ghost games will continue at least until the end of October.

However, the door has been left open for the return of spectators after that, with a working group set to look into the concept of how the Bundesliga could welcome fans back into stadiums. Major events where contact tracing and compliance with hygiene regulations cannot be adhered to remain banned until the end of the year in Germany.

Bavaria’s Premier Markus Söder said that it would not have been sensible to allow fans to return to stadiums in September with the rising cases of COVID-19 in the country.

On Wednesday, the DFL, together with the DFB, published a revised hygiene concept which is to be followed by the 36 clubs in the top two division of German football for the upcoming season. The next meeting between the member clubs is scheduled for September 03, where a number of measures will be discussed including personalised tickets for when fans will be allowed back into stadiums.

The Bundesliga gets underway on September 18, with Bayern Munich taking on Schalke. Borussia Dortmund get their season underway against Borussia Mönchengladbach a day later. As always, the first round of the DFB Pokal will take place a week before the start of the new Bundesliga season.