The Italian Serie A are one step closer to resuming their schedule after being on hold for over one month.
Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte confirmed on Sunday that May 18th will be the day that professional sports teams can resume training. There is no official date yet for the restart of the Serie A season, but Sunday’s announcement is a positive step in the right direction.
Conte also stated that the government will “work with experts” to monitor the situation and then later “evaluate whether there are the conditions to end the suspended championships”.
The news comes five days after all 20 Serie A clubs unanimously voted to try and complete the 2019-20 season. The league had been in a standstill since March 9th and still have 12 rounds of matches to play.
In addition, four previously postponed matches from Round 25 will need to be made-up. As for the Coppa Italia tournament, four teams remain with the second leg semifinal ties still needing to be played.
Defending champion Juventus leads the Serie A table with 63 points from 26 games, one point ahead of second-place Lazio.
The race for the top four is also wide open with Inter Milan and Atalanta currently occupying the final two spots. AS Roma and Napoli are in the final European qualification spots while Lecce, SPAL and Brescia occupy the three relegation spots.
Italy, Spain, and Germany have all taken the next steps in resumption of their seasons while England and France have yet to announce a possible plan. The Dutch Eredivisie saw its season ended after the KNVB ruled to void the current campaign and not award Ajax the league trophy.