German Bundesliga Returns To Action Without Fans

The world was watching Germany this past weekend as the Bundesliga became the first elite sports league to return to action after the pandemic-enforced suspension.

In stereotypically efficient German fashion, the nation’s top soccer league was the first to implement all the necessary health precautions.

The Bundesliga returned with six games, the highlight of which was the Revierderby between Borussia Dortmund and FC Schalke.

The return of the Bundesliga was an indication of what is to come for soccer and for other sports. The sight of the near-empty stadiums, and team personnel observing social distancing and wearing facemasks was stark.

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Dortmund’s world-famous ‘Yellow Wall’, Europe’s biggest standing section, normally lives up to it’s moniker. A vast yellow wall with 24,000 hardcore fans that spurs on the home team and intimidates the visitors. This weekend, as the Dortmund players turned towards the wall to celebrate their 4 – 0 win, it was empty.

“I’d prefer it if the conditions would be normal,” Dortmund midfielder Julian Brandt said. “But in the end, we all have to adapt.”

“Spectators are part of it, just like goals and coaches. We are all soccer-crazy, and therefore it’s sad that fans can’t be here,” Freiburg coach Christian Streich said after his team’s 1-1 draw against RB Leipzig.

Spain’s La Liga, Italy’s Serie A and England’s Premier League will have watched closely, as they figure out how to resume their own seasons. France’s Ligue 1 has already been cancelled. 

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High-profile Premier League stars like Raheem Sterling and Danny Rose have voiced public concerns about restarting the season. Despite this, the Premier League will meet today and is expected to approve procedures for a return to training. Once protocol is finalized, the Premier League hopes to begin playing games again on June 12.