There are no reasons to stop the Belarusian Premier League, proclaims Sergei Zhardetski
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Belarus FA’s general secretary Sergei Zhardetski has confirmed that Belarus have found no reason to stop the Belarusian Premier League from moving on. Football around the world has been suspended, but the Belarusian top tier is one of the few still active and moving on despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
Their insistence to play football has bemused and shocked many across the world but that hasn’t stopped the uptick in revenue and broadcasting that the league has managed to get. Reports indicate that is one of the reasons why it moves on despite, as of April 3, there being more than 350 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Belarus.
However, while the country has suspended all “cultural, sporting and scientific events with international participation” until the sixth of April, football continues. That has been confirmed by Sergei Zhardetski, the general secretary of Belarus’ FA, and he admitted that the country have found no reason to stop football. He also admitted that they review the situation daily and they have full faith in their health care system with them in touch with "corresponding authorities in Belarus".
"We review the situation on a daily basis. We fully trust our health care system and there are currently no reasons for stopping the league. We understand that the situation in some countries is very serious but having consulted with the corresponding authorities in Belarus we have an understanding that our league can continue for the moment," Zhardetski said, reported ESPN.
The fact that football is still playing has seen the league dubbed as “the last league on earth” and it has seen fans flood to watch games. That includes at the stadiums and while no official figures have been released, reports indicate that attendances are slowly but steadily rising. It saw Zhardetski further add that Belarus is not in “critical condition” and that allows them to leave the league running.
"It is what it is. We did not ask for this label, but the situation in Belarus is really not that critical to close the tournament. Additional popularization is good for Belarusian football. Obviously, there is an interest in terms of TV rights and a number of countries are broadcasting. But I think this is not the time to look at this from a commercial prospective,” he added.
