The Benin Football Federation (FBF) on Thursday announced its decision to cancel the remainder of the domestic football season in the country, due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
The Benin leagues have been on hold since March 19, when the government announced measures to curb the spread of the virus.
The federation announced the decision this week after an extensive consultative meeting, a resolution that was ratified by the Executive Committee.
“Through a virtual meeting on June 29, the Executive Committee has noted the situation has not improved since the Emergency Committee meeting on June 15. On the contrary, positive cases are increasing in a worrying trend, hence the need to be extra vigilant,” FBF said in a statement.
“Based on these considerations, the Executive Committee decided to definitively end the various championships of the 2019-2020 season for the health and safety of the entire football community. “
The Executive Committee has also announced there will be no promotion or relegation across all leagues.
“The same clubs for Leagues One, Two and Three in the 2019-2020 season are therefore eligible for the 2020-2021 season,” the statement added.
The West African nation has had 1199 Covid-19 infections to date, with 21 deaths and 333 recoveries. Benin was a relatively late starter worldwide with the virus, recording its first infection on March 16.
There was also a sudden drop in numbers from May 18 with 209 recoveries reported in a single day on May 19. Since then, however, there has been a steady rise in numbers with 243 total infections recorded on June 1, with that number rising to 1199 a month later.
In partnership with ANA and Sports Leo
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