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As well as its devastating impact on millions of lives across the globe, the coronavirus pandemic also decimated professional sport.
Institutions like the English Premier League, America's NBA and Major League Baseball and the NRL and AFL in Australia were all brought to a shuddering halt in unprecedented moves outside of war time.
It began with the postponement or cancellation of sporting events in China in late January, where COVID-19 originated, before it started affecting leagues and tournaments globally
The majority were shut down around the time the outbreak was officially classified as a pandemic by the World Health Organisation on 12 March (AEDT). The AFL and NRL were among the last sporting competitions globally to cease, on 22 and 23 March after two and one round of action respectively.
Formula One and MotoGP, Six Nations and World Sevens rugby, major tournaments in golf and tennis and many more faced cancellations and are now dealing with uncertain futures.
The Tokyo Olympics were one of the last to cave in to the pandemic. On 25 March, it was announced the Games would be postponed for the first time ever. They will now run from 23 July to 8 August 2021, although they will still be titled Tokyo 2020.
The Euro 2020 football tournament was also postponed. Final play-off matches will be held later this year, with the competition also to be staged in 2021.
The situation has had a devastating impact on teams, players, organisations, broadcast networks and more. But there are finally signs of a gradual turnaround.
The UFC led the way, with its president Dana White fulfilling his promise after a couple of false starts of holding three events in just eight days. From 10 May to 17 May AEST, three separate events were held in Jacksonville without fans in attendance. Despite one fighter testing positive prior to UFC 249, the events were otherwise held successfully without incident.
The German Bundesliga restarted on 16 May, while Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter V'landys has been widely hailed for his efforts in getting the NRL competition back up and running.
On 11 April, V'landys made the bold call that rugby league would return on 28 May. It was met with widespread scorn, but sure enough the league returned on that date with a match between the Brisbane Broncos and Parramatta at Suncorp Stadium. Broadcasters used artificial crowd noises as the matches are being played without fans. V'landys has now stated another optimistic aim to have reduced numbers of fans back in stadiums as early as 1 July.
The AFL was slower to act than the NRL, but Australian Rules will make its return on 11 June. The English Premier League is now targeting 17 June as its return date, with Liverpool holding an enormous 25-point lead and just two wins from its first league title in three decades.
With the coronavirus still causing such devastation in the United States, with over 100,000 deaths as of 28 May, American sports have had to act with extreme caution. Training camps in the NBA, NHL and MLB are being organised and the major sports hope to resume some time in July.
Finder acknowledges that this is not a comprehensive list of every single sport in the world affected. In the meantime it might be best to get your sporting fix by checking out our list of the best sports movies.
| Event | Date | Impact | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boxing Olympic qualifiers | 3-14 February | Relocated | More info |
| Matildas vs China | 13 February | Relocated | More info |
| Golf USLPGA: LPGA Thailand | 20-23 February | Cancelled | More info |
| Chinese Super League | 21 February | Postponed | More info |
| Golf USLPGA: HSBC Champions | 27 February-1 March | Cancelled | More info |
| Japan's J.League | 25 February-15 March | Delayed | More info |
| Korea's K League | 29 February | Postponed indefinitely | More info |
| Swiss Football League | 29 February | All games from this date cancelled | More info |
| Pro14 Rugby | 29 February | Two matches in Italy postponed | More info |
| Football Asian Champions League Match days 1-3 | 2-4 March | Postponed | More info |
| Golf USLPGA: Blue Bay | 5-8 March | Cancelled | More info |
| Davis Cup - China forfeited to Romania | 6-7 March | Forfeited | More info |
| Six Nations: Italy vs Ireland | 7 March | Postponed | More info |
| Strasbourg vs PSG | 7 March | Postponed | More info |
| MotoGP Qatar | 9 March | Cancelled | More info |
| Indian Wells | 9 March | Cancelled | More info |
| Serie A | 10 March | Cancelled | More info |
| NBA | 12 March | Season suspended | More info |
| NBL Finals | 12 March | Postponed | More info |
| NCAA College basketball tournament 'March Madness' | 13 March | Cancelled | More info |
| NHL | 13 March | Season suspended | More info |
| MLS | 13 March | Season suspended | More info |
| MLB | 13 March | Season delayed | More info |
| Tennis ATP Tour | 13 March-20 Apr | Suspended six weeks | More info |
| World Superbikes Qatar | 13-20 March | Played behind closed doors | More info |
| Cricket: Australia vs NZ ODI series | 13-15 March | Cancelled | More info |
| Australian F1 Grand Prix | 13-15 March | Cancelled | More info |
| V8 Supercars Melbourne 400 | 13-15 March | To be rescheduled | More info |
| Golf PGA Tour | 12 March-April 5 | Cancelled | More info |
| NBL Finals | 13 March | Cancelled, Perth declared champions | More info |
| English Premier League | 14 March | Suspended | More info |
| Ligue 1 | 14 March | Suspended | More info |
| World Surf League | 14 March | Suspended | More info |
| Bundesliga | 14 March | Suspended | More info |
| English Football League | 14 March | Suspended | More info |
| The Masters | 14 March | Postponed | More info |
| Scottish Premiership Football League | 14 March | Suspended | More info |
| Indian Premier League | 14 March | Postponed | More info |
| F1 Bahrain GP | 14 March | Postponed | More info |
| F1 Vietnam GP | 14 March | Postponed | More info |
| IndyCar | 14 March | Events from 13 March to 26 April cancelled | More info |
| Cricket: India vs South Africa ODI series | 15 March | Postponed | More info |
| Cricket: Australia vs New Zealand ODI | 15 and 20 March | Cancelled | More info |
| NASCAR | 16 March | 7 races postponed | More info |
| Surfing WSL Tour | Ongoing | All March events cancelled | More info |
| Basketball Euroleague | Ongoing | Suspended indefinitely | More info |
| UK Super League | Ongoing | Postponed | More info |
| Cricket Sheffield Shield | 17-20 March | Competition cancelled, NSW given title | More info |
| WCQ: Australia vs Kuwait/Nepal vs Australia | 26 March, 31 March | Postponed | More info |
| NHL | Ongoing | Season suspended indefinitely | More info |
| Asian Champions League: Perth Glory vs Ulsan Hyundai | 18 March | Postponed | More info |
| MotoGP Thailand | 20-22 March | Postponed | More info |
| Super Rugby | 20 March | Postponed | More info |
| Motorsport Formula E Championship | 21 March | Cancelled | More info |
| AFL | 22 March | Postponed | More info |
| AFLW | 22 March | Season cancelled, no premiership | More info |
| NRL | 23 March | Postponed | More info |
| Cricket: Australia women tour of South Africa | 22 March-4 April | Suspended | More info |
| 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games | 25 March | Postponed 1 year | More info |
| Cricket Indian Premier League | 29 March-15 April | Suspended until April 15 | More info |
| MotoGP USA | 4-6 April | Postponed | More info |
| Rugby Union World Sevens: Hong Kong | 3-5 April (re-scheduled to 16-18 October) | Rescheduled | More info |
| US vs Matildas friendly | 11 April | Cancelled | More info |
| Rugby Union World Sevens: Singapore | 11-12 April (re-scheduled to 10-11 October) | Rescheduled | More info |
| Tennis Fed Cup Finals | 14-19 April | Postponed | More info |
| Canada vs Matildas | 15 April | Cancelled | More info |
| Golf PGA: Maybank Championship | 16-19 April | Postponed | More info |
| Formula1: China Grand Prix | 17-19 April | Postponed | More info |
| MotoGP Argentina | 17-19 April | Rescheduled to November | More info |
| Boxing: Jeff Horn vs Tim Tszyu fight | 22 April | Postponed | More info |
| Golf PGA: China Open | 23-26 April | Postponed | More info |
| SailGP San Francisco | 2-3 May | Cancelled | More info |
| Football Asian Champions League Round of 16 | 18 May | Postponed/rescheduled | More info |
| WTA Tour Xi'an Open | 13-19 April | Cancelled | More info |
| Horse racing: Kentucky Derby | 2 May | Rescheduled | More info |
| Golf: US PGA Championship | 14-17 May | Postponed | More info |
| Tennis: French Open | 24 May-7 June | Rescheduled | More info |
| AFL China | 7 June | Cancelled/relocated | More info |
| WCQ: Australia vs Taiwan/Jordan | 4, 9 June | Postponed | More info |
| Rugby League: NZ vs Tonga, Samoa vs Cook Islands | 20 June | Postponed | More info |
While you're waiting for your favourite sports to come back, maybe it's a good time to get on top of your finances? With the changing economic climate, it helps to be prepared.
Here are some guides on how to save money on your daily expenses. There are loads of little things that you can save money. It all adds up in the end!
Picture: GettyImages
Fans of select sporting events may start to consider signing up to new subscriptions. As stated some competitions have recommenced with more being promised all the time.
Image source: Kayo Sports website
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