Fans won’t return to football stadiums at all THIS SEASON, says Juventus chief Andrea Agnelli

Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli has conceded fans are unlikely to return to stadiums before the end of the 2020-21 season.

Speaking on Wednesday, Agnelli, who is also chairman of the European Club Association, explained that the nature of the pandemic heading towards February makes it probable that a second season concludes disrupted by Covid-19. 

To further contextualise the issues facing clubs continuing to operate amid a global health crisis, Agnelli estimated that top flight clubs across Europe stand to lose as much as £7.5billion through 2019-20 and 2020-21 due to the economical squeeze brought on by Covid-19.  

Juventus are not expecting fans to return to games this season, says chairman Andrea Agnelli

The 2019-20 season in Italy finished without any fans but the government allowed up to 1,000 spectators inside the stadiums for the start of the 2020-21 campaign. 

But a rising number of cases saw a U-turn on that decision and Agnelli looks resigned to the fact that fans will not return this season. 

Italy has recorded almost 2.5million positive Covid-19 cases since the outbreak in Europe back in March 2020. In the last seven days Italy is averaging just over 12,000 cases a day. 

With 86,422 deaths in Italy alone, measures have remained strict regarding social activities and fans returning to stadiums to see football finds itself low down the priority list. 

More to follow.