MUNICH – Bundesliga matches behind closed doors will likely be needed to help clubs and others in the business once play can resume amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to German football federation vice-president Rainer Koch.
Koch said in a Sunday talk show by broadcasters Sport1 he could not foresee when play could resume and that it would be wise not to make any predictions.
German football is suspended since last weekend, officially until April 3 but an extension appears all but a formality.
Like other countries, Germany aims to complete the league now that the Euro 2020 tournament has been postponed by a year.
A cancellation of the season would cost the clubs an estimated 750 million euros (802 million dollars), and Koch called for games behind closed doors to avoid such a scenario – which would also help the "several thousand work places" created by professional football.
"No one wants games without football fans, but we even less want no football at all," Koch said, warning that without such games "the viability of football is at risk."