EXPLAINER: COVID-19 sidelines various sports games and seasons

Since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic March 17, the world has been affected in different ways. From stay-at-home orders to shortages of toilet paper, the lives of everyone have been affected in some way or form.

One of the changes society had to adapt to is the lack of professional sports. At the time of publication, America will have gone more than a month without any form of professional sports being played, something that is entirely unprecedented.

Sports provide a sense of escapism for fans, allowing them to forget about the worries of their daily lives for just a few hours, even giving members of a community something to rally around during a time of crisis in some instances.

But with the cancellation of all professional sports in America, and, for the most part, worldwide, everyone from the casual fan to the die-hard fanatic has had to make adjustments. Here are a few ways that the sports world has been impacted by COVID-19.

Basketball

The first major American sports league to postpone its season until further notice was the National Basketball Association (NBA) March 11. While the NBA is not making any claims, fans and commentators alike have pointed their fingers at Utah Jazz player Rudy Gobert for the sole cause of the season being postponed.

Two days before the season was postponed, Gobert – mocking the seriousness of COVID-19 – proceeded to cough on and make a point to touch every microphone during a post-game press conference.

Gobert then became the first NBA player to test positive for COVID-19 just before the opening tip-off of a game between the Jazz and the Oklahoma City Thunder. The players were removed from the court and tested in the locker rooms, revealing that a few more tested positive, causing the NBA to immediately postpone all games until further notice.

Right now, the NBA playoffs would be in full swing and fans would be waiting eagerly to see who would be crowned this year’s champion. Instead, fans are waiting eagerly to see when the NBA will return, with commissioner Adam Silver not giving a clear answer and even suggesting games could be played into the late summer.

College Basketball followed soon after, with conference tournaments even being canceled mid-game. The NCAA announced that the National Championship Tournament, also known as March Madness, would still be played but with only family members of the players allowed to attend.

This was shortly overturned a day later when the NCAA announced the cancellation of the tournament, leaving many college seniors without that memorable final game moment with their schools.

Football

While the NFL has most likely been the least impacted American sports league, as spring is offseason for the NFL – with the season beginning in the early fall – COVID-19 has still affected the league. Commissioner Roger Goodell began by canceling all league meetings March 12, followed by ordering all NFL teams to close their facilities March 24.

The NFL Draft, which was scheduled to take place in Las Vegas April 23, was moved entirely online with coaches, players, and league personnel interacting remotely from their homes, a first for the NFL.

While the NFL is the league least affected by the pandemic, the same cannot be said for the newest professional football league, the XFL. On March 12, XFL commissioner Oliver Luck announced that the league would not play its regular-season games.

On March 20, the XFL canceled the remainder of the 2020 season, stating they looked forward to playing in 2021.

Unfortunately, fans of the XFL will be left wondering of what could have been as it was announced April 10 that the XFL had suspended all operations, laid off all employees, and has no plans to return. The XFL filed for bankruptcy shortly after.

The cancellation of games left the league without a steady stream of revenue, something the 5-week-old league desperately needed. While some players were able to sign contracts with the NFL, the majority of the players, along with all team personnel and other league employees, were left unemployed.

The league and teams have provided no comment since the shutdown and have gone dark on all social media platforms.

Other Sports

Major League Baseball canceled its spring training season and suspended its season indefinitely March 12, with commissioner Rob Manfred providing no definitive answer on when baseball will return.

For more information on how Major League Baseball is handling COVID-19, here is a video interview between MLB commissioner Rob Manfred and ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt.

The Olympic Committee announced March 24 that the 2020 Summer Olympics to be held in Tokyo has been pushed back to 2021.

Soccer leagues around the world have postponed their seasons, with clubs in England turning their stadiums into temporary hospitals and the 2020 European Championship tournament being pushed back to 2021.

The NHL followed other major American sports leagues and suspended its regular season March 12.

The PGA Tour has canceled or rescheduled its upcoming Major tournaments such as the Masters and Player’s Open Championship.