Austrian football ahead of trend-setting decisions

The coronavirus pandemic has put Austrian football in shock. Games and training have been suspended for more than a month, and forced rest has threatened the existence of some clubs, especially at the professional level. Solutions are now being sought, first Wednesday at a meeting of the ÖFB Presidium and the next day at the Bundesliga club conference.

At the ÖFB Presidium, all competitions in the country, from youth to women’s football, amateur leagues and the Bundesliga to the Cup, are put to the test. As sports minister and vice chancellor Werner Kogler announced the ban on events a few days ago and amateur-level ghost games aren’t a problem, canceling all the lower leagues is just a formal act, to be held on Wednesday.

In this context, the question of the qualification of the abandoned leagues is more interesting. There is a trend here for the previous championship course to be canceled and start again in the summer, if Corona’s situation allows it. In theory, the handling of canceled championships could be handled differently by state associations, but several heads of state recently emphasized in public statements that uniform regulation should be found across Austria.

On the agenda, in addition to a possible final stop for the second league, there is also the question of how the season would be classified in the upper house in case of abandonment. Decision-making authority rests with the ÖFB Presidium. The additional procedure in case of a demolition is also of great financial importance, after all, in addition to the championship title, it is also about the distribution of the European Cup places and the descent.

The championship was suspended after the end of the basic round, ten rounds in the master and qualifying group are still pending. Under the current situation, St. Pölten would have relocated. However, the lower Austrians would take legal means in the case of a classification of this table, so an increase from 12 to 13 or 14 clubs (with Ried and possibly Austria Klagenfurt) is likely, provided that the Bundesliga season did not I finished brought.

Since, in theory, the championship can be finalized until early or mid-August, a restart would even be conceivable in early July at the latest if the Europa League tiebreaker is dispensed with. It is currently officially on hiatus until early May. A postponement of this date will be discussed at the league club conference, which, like the ÖFB Presidium meeting, will be held via video.

All Oberhaus clubs recently emphasized that they wanted to take the championship across the finish line on the pitch. And yet, the motivation to play ghost games in pandemic times is different. Red Bull Salzburg, second in the table, absolutely wants to play again; Not entirely by chance, because Linz would be a teacher if they were dropped and scored after 22 rounds.

LASK President Siegmund Gruber is a member of the ÖFB Presidium Supervisory Board, as well as Philipp Thonhauser (Admira) and League Executive Council member Christian Ebenbauer, as well as the nine regional heads and ÖFB President Leo Windtner. In the event of termination, a legal opinion commissioned by the ÖFB is of particular importance.

If the current state of the Bundesliga is evaluated, LASK would play in the play-off and Salzburg in the qualification for the Champions League. Rapid would be third in the group stage of the Europa League, but only if Salzburg wins the cup final against Austria Lustenau. The game was reportedly scheduled for May 1 at the Klagenfurt Wörthersee stadium. Whether or not the match will take place will also be discussed at the ÖFB meeting.