Last week was supposed to be a big one for European football (soccer), as the finals of the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Champions League were scheduled to take place in Gdansk and Istanbul on Wednesday and Saturday, respectively. The latter game in particular, arguably the biggest there is in club football, would have been watched by hundreds of millions of fans around the world, as it traditionally concludes the European football season with a bang.

Not this year though, as the coronavirus pandemic put the brakes on football and all professional sports, halting national competitions as well as European cups in early March. Despite the slight change of plans, last week turned out to be a big one for football fans across Europe, as news emerged that the English Premier League, Spain’s La Liga and Italy’s Serie A are all readying a return to play over the next few weeks.

Following the lead of the German Bundesliga, which (so far successfully) restarted on May 16, Spain’s La Liga is scheduled to return on June 11, while Italy’s Serie A will return on June 20. American soccer fans might want to mark June 17 on their calendars, as that’s the date for the English Premier League’s return to play after a three-months suspension.

source statists