The AFL have announced the 2020 season will be reduced to 17 rounds, becoming the latest sporting league to fall victim to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
However, Gillon McLachlan said the AFL was yet to reach a decision as to whether Round 1 – set to begin on Thursday – would take place.
This follows the suspension of all state competitions and talent programs – including the national one – until May 31.
The reduction means each team will play each other just once in 2020. The first four rounds, whenever they take place, will take place as fixtured, with altered rounds to begin from Round 5 onwards.
“Hard decisions [were] necessary to protect health and livelihoods in our football family,” McLachlan said in a statement.
McLachlan also conceded that a significant delay of the season could also force the grand final to be held at a venue other than the MCG if cricket has taken control of the venue by then. While he said the AFL was hoping to keep the current finals structure in place, they were looking at shortening games to create greater flexibility if necessary.
Unlike the NRL earlier in the day, McLachlan did seem to hint in more definitive terms that a player testing positive to COVID-19 would result in a suspension of the season.
While he said he recognised the community’s ‘need’ to have live football to look forward to, but that desperate measures were required given the unprecedented situation.
It was rumoured that the AFL would choose to have the season go ahead on time but behind closed doors to prevent large crowds spreading the disease.
Up until now, league officials have been adamant that the season would continue as planned. However, recent events, including the cancellation of the 2020 Melbourne Grand Prix and other sports cancelling or postponing matches, have forced their hand.
AFL clubs have already been taking steps to prevent players from being exposed to coronavirus, including banning open training sessions, limiting media and sponsorship interviews and advising players to abstain from handshakes and high-fives.
Sam Switkowski of Fremantle and Collingwood captain Scott Pendlebury have both recently been in quarantine after experiencing flu-like symptoms. Switkowski’s test returned negative whereas Pendlebury’s, contrary to earlier reports that it had returned negative, is yet to return.
A planned match in China between St Kilda and Port Adelaide has already been relocated to Melbourne.
The Brazilian
Roar Rookie
He's probably never worked this hard before. Ignorance is bliss.
TezzaPel
Roar Rookie
Will Gill take a pay cut?
RT
Roar Rookie
No, I don't think the AFL are considering who is travelling, they are looking at the bigger picture. AFL players are at a lower risk than most of society. The rest of us are still going to work and school and packing in to an overcrowded train carriage to work in an overcrowded city is a lot riskier than driving to training or flying to a match and playing in a closed stadium. If everyone stops everything, the country will fall over and the cost to society will be bigger than the virus. I wouldn't be surprised if round 2 doesn't happen, but that would only be because a player tests positive or the spread of the virus is worse than expected. Not because Essendon and Hawthorn have to travel.
Rowdy
Roar Rookie
He's been browsing "Sobriquets Anonymous"
Gary
Roar Rookie
Seriously? Despite primetime fixturing revolving around the same big Melbourne clubs, you think if 1, or more, of these clubs was travelling interstate the AFL wouldn’t have called a halt to the season by now? Could you imagine 2 big Melbourne clubs hopping on a plane to travel interstate? That is absolute rubbish to think that would happen. But, somehow they quickly made the decision to stop fans from attending games this weekend. Beggars belief. Essendon and Hawthorn are scheduled to travel in Rnd2… lets see if that goes ahead.
Liam Salter
Roar Guru
Personally, seeing any footy will assist with my mindset. All the things you mention plus personal stuff have left me a little disillusioned of late. Footy is a remarkable cure. :silly:
Nick
Roar Guru
So basically, he's waiting on the results of Scott Pendlebury before he makes a call for Thursday.
DTM
Guest
They have to cancel the season now - how can the AFL Fantasy game work with only 17 rounds? Sorry, I'm getting bored.
DTM
Guest
What's NBA and EPL?
The real SC
Roar Rookie
With AFL reducing the season from 22 rounds to 17 rounds, each team play other once. North Melbourne v Melbourne match (scheduled to be played in Round 23 could be pushed as earlier as possible. the AFL is controlling the fixtures. After the AFL has made modifications to their fixtures, we will find out which match will be produced by Seven or Fox. Anzac Day (Collingwood v Essendon) could be played during the afternoon, rather than twilight. For VFL, SANFL and WAFL, I think that they need to reduce the rounds to 10, 10 and 14 respectively.
RT
Roar Rookie
Are you here for a reason?
RT
Roar Rookie
Yeah it is just another conspiracy, of course.
Al
Guest
The AFL's god, the all mighty dollar. Far bigger sporting competitions (NBA, EPL) have shut themselves down but no, the administers of this provincial Victorian game know far better.
Gary
Roar Rookie
I hope Gil postpones rd1 asap. It seems a tad unfair to play rd1 when only 2 Vic teams are travelling, whereas 4 non-vic teams have to travel interstate. I am sure if it were the other way round, the decision would have already been made.
6x6 perkele
Roar Rookie
Hopefully, even if it's only Rd 1 after a news year of corona, bushfires and domestic violence it would be an awesome distraction.
Pope Paul VII
Roar Rookie
Start on the weekend while all the players (so far) are clear.
Fadida
Roar Rookie
The AFL have handled this far better than the A-league or NRL. Clear and decisive guidance with the greater good in mind Well done, from an A-league fan
Nick
Roar Guru
The situation is unprecedented but we’ve been sending the Aussie cricket team’s and our athletes to more dire places for decades. Generally we send them to places where they can get a full suite of vaccinations, and a security team in case of civil unrest issues. Neither of options are solutions for this at the moment.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Not that sensible to postpone when we are ready to go now. Play until there's a problem. However.... ....just insist that before a tackle, a player must apply sanitizer. If they don't, it's a free kick. 50 metre penalty if they don't scrub before returning the ball.
peter ostle
Guest
A sports CEO who puts the health of the community first, although he ought to cancel the first round. If sports sees itself as a leading member of the community it needs to do this by exhibiting to people the best response in slowing down the spread of the virus. Gillon is reacting as sports leaders did to the flu outbreak in 1918/19. Hopefully, if players have to take a salary cut it will be more focused on the top earners than the bottom ones, and that the AFL admin leaders do the same.