Given, the positive results so far, I really want to see this season played out. Maybe suspend the Eastern Conference Games.
MLS is suspending its season immediately until further notice due to coronavirus, a source with knowledge of the situation tells Sports Illustrated.— Subscribe to GrantWahl.com (@GrantWahl) March 12, 2020
I am really bummed everything is getting canceled. I get it, but sometimes people need a bit of an escape for a little while.....
So to be clear, they can Cancel Games (like they did after 911), Postpone/reschedule games (=Suspend?), or play empty stadiums. Or a combination of the above. Nice article in one of the financial magazines about hope the MLS needs Stadium revenue more than other sports that have large TV revenue. If I recall correctly, the US Broadcast of the EPL costs many times the MLS rights. I'd prefer they re-schedule some matches in the short run, and then if the Covid 19 problems drag on too long, play a reduced schedule that is reasonably balanced to allow the Playoffs.
I would prefer postponement for now. As you said, empty stadiums really hit MLS teams hard. Even postponements are not great for the Rapids as those games may come back as midweek games and attendance sucks at those. But 8,000 people in the house has to be better than nothing.
I see USL is also suspending play. Depending on how long that lasts, or if the crowds don't come back when they resume, that could really hurt USL clubs.
There were only a few weeks left in the 2001 season when it was canceled, and playoffs were still held that year. Outright canceling this season two-weeks in would be unprecedented. I think cancellation is unlikely unless there's still major travel and gathering restrictions mid-summer.
And now the PGA, EPL follow suit......One of the fun things to do going forward is to flip through ESPN and the other Sports channels to see what they are broadcasting. There is so much on in March, with the NCAA games, NIT, final playoff pushes for NBA/NHL, and the early MLS & MLB Pre-season. Even the Ski Racers are done for the season (harder to push those into June, eh)?
Mikaela Shiffrin won't repeat her world cup. She had a big lead before her hiatus when her father passed away. Now she won't be able to make it up.
COVID-19 is forcing us to rethink the role of sports in our lives and in society. It's hard to think that at least some long-term changes won't follow the present crisis. These are just a few random and early musings, and not an attempt to work through the implications. Are sports entertainment? Or a diversion from reality? Or a stress reliever? Or a vehicle for socialization? Or part of our collective identity? Or less relevant than we believe? Where do sports (in general) fall in the pecking order of life? It certainly isn't life-and-death. But is it more than something to occupy spare time? Does the elimination of sport force us to rearrange existing priorities, or is the absence of sport less important than sports team owners and sports media would have us believe? It seems likely that some sports teams - mostly minor league teams - will not survive the hiatus. Will the loss of those teams even be noticed beyond the cities where they played? Or will their absence largely go unnoticed against the backdrop of other societal changes imposed by a new normal of pandemic? If pandemic preparation becomes the new normal, will in-person attendance be replaced by virtual experience? If virtual, will pay-per-view with complete season access supplant sporadic television or cable appearances? Will fans be willing to pay to see every game, or will the desire to watch virtual events decline? What does a virtual experience for professional sport mean for youth sports? Will fewer youth participate in team sports because of parental concerns regarding viral or bacterial hazards? Will changes in youth participation affect some sports more than others. and can those sports adapt? I don't have any real answers here. I'm just posing questions for discussion.
Overall my hope is that the Sports World will resume normal operations after a brief (weeks, months?) hiatus. This has happened with players strikes, owners lockouts, etc. that have lost entire seasons. Recall post 911 the games resumed in about 6 weeks (IIRC). For those of us who are older there was a period of a few years in the pre-polio vaccine era that shuttered kids inside. So I think we will do OK. I suspect that there will be some natural selection, as fortcollins suggests, that some marginally afloat enterprises will fail. My prediction is that next year we will get a Influenza Vaccine, and maybe a Corona Virus Vaccine, and they will need to deal with the "no vaccine" folks a bit more seriously. R
Not sports related, but something I'm hoping for: There will be a lot of telecommuting going on. Hopefully someone in academia will analyze the data produced and publish a study showing how productivity was effected. If there is no significant change or even a boost in productivity, perhaps employers will be more likely to make telecommuting a regular thing?
I think we'll be very happy if we get that by next winter. I think that's a more realistic scenario for fall/winter 2021.
To the plus, if there is one, the longer it takes for a vaccine at least the higher the 'herd immunity' percentage will get with persons that have survived infection and are no longer susceptible (or carriers). By fall/winter 2021 that could likely exceed 50% in populated areas -- but also assumes no major mutations making those persons at risk again?