We know this topic has been beaten to a pulp everywhere but what can we say, football is too big a part of our lives for it not to be spoken at length. The period of time that we are living through right now is truly unprecedented and one cannot underestimate the impact of this pandemic on sports and the world.

Life has come to a grinding halt all over the world and is especially so in Europe, where Italy which has recently surpassed China as the worst hit country (by recorded deaths) from the virus. With this other epicentre in Europe and the wide-reach of this virus, it was inevitable that football would come to a halt as well.

With virtually every league suspending all play for the time being, the debate has raged on as to how to end the current season fairly. With the confirmation that the Euros, Copa America and the Olympics’ have been postponed to 2021, the path is a bit clearer to navigate as to when can the seasons extend till.

We take a look at 4 different options and assess their viability.

Cancel the entire season now

Let us start straight off with the most unlikely of scenarios. Most leagues are suspended till at least the end of the April with the pandemic slowly reaching its peak at the moment. With over a month of the football calendar cleared, there were some who were quick to jump the gun and tout the cancellation of the league straight away. With the summer cleared, however, this route would be unexpected to say the least and sure to cause an uproar among fans.

We’ll say it for you: Ridiculous!

Restart the season at the end of April behind closed doors

There have been plenty of people piping up against the idea of playing behind closed doors. Pep Guardiola was of the view that football is for the fans and to remove fans from the equation would be going against the very spirit of football. He had said that before the league was suspended and may have now changed his view on things especially with estimates on how much the leagues and clubs will be losing if this pandemic drags on.

Clubs are suffering without match-day revenue but if they were to be played behind closed doors, TV deals will still be fulfilled and some much needed continuity can be restored.

However, playing behind closed doors still puts the players and staff at risk as they travel for the games. If the pandemic rages on and the leagues restart, the potential fallout could be catastrophic for those in charge.

Delay the season for as long as needed

This seems a more viable option as the leagues will only restart once governments have given the all clear (whenever that may be). If leagues were to go down this route, there would be fans back into stadiums and the season could reach its conclusion.

The issue with this option would stem from the uncertainty of when this pandemic will actually end or at least come under control. If the situation dies down enough for football to resume by the middle of the year or even after, the current season matches may very likely encroach onto next season’s (assuming there are to be no changes made to next season’s calendar). Should we jeopardise the start of a fresh season just to finish one that has, unfortunately, been ravaged by the virus?

Set a deadline at which point the season will be cancelled

This appears to be the best option available.

With all the planning involved, the leagues would know by which date football has to restart in order to complete all games before the projected start of next season. The current date projected is June 1, which would force football to conclude the current season in just six weeks with all mid-week slots taken up.

If a date is set, then the leagues will have to cancel the current season and start afresh. The issue that is on the tip of every Liverpool fan’s tongue would then be; will we be crowned champions?

There are 2 ways that we believe should be considered and (we are just going to say it) neither of them would see Liverpool or any other team at the top of their respective leagues being considered champions.

Before you get upset, hear us out. When it comes to setting precedents, the lead that Liverpool has over second-placed Man City at the moment will not be useful for future reference. In the future, would 10 points be enough? What about 8 but the team leading had been on a rough patch of form and may have even lost the title if things had gone on?

Now you might say that these are exceptional circumstances and may likely be never repeated but that is both folly to say and also turning a blind eye to the fact that precedents like these may turn out to be very dangerous in the long run.

Leagues have a set number of games and handing over the title before the culmination of those games would be unfair on the relegated teams. Would all 3 now be relegated due to this? Can we play a 23 team league in the EPL next season? But if we do then how do we decide who gets promoted?

The first, and best in our opinion, would be to be null all results of the season if the deadline is passed. As much as it may be difficult to stomach for some fans, the reality that we live in is as such.

The second way would be to hand the title of “Honourary Champions” to all the teams who are at the respective leagues but still start next season with the same teams as this one. Although it would not be the same as the full title, it might go some way to appease fans.

We at Footsy would like to thank all frontline workers who have been working tirelessly to try and contain the situation. Please be prudent in your personal hygiene and stay indoors whenever possible and adhere to the social distancing guidelines when outdoors.

We can beat this. Together.