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League I may not even resume, but in a more “dramatic” scenario, drawn up by João Paulo Rebelo, Secretary of State for Youth and Sports, he may return and have to stop again. In the first part of this interview with “Jornal Economico” (interview conducted last Thursday, May 7, before the rules defined by the DGS for the resumption of the I League were known), the government official was skeptical about the return of professional football in Portugal.
António Costa said he would have no problem taking a step back. What does this do in the context of Portuguese football?
This was not something that the Prime Minister had declared for the context of football in particular, he said it for all the economic activity of our society. The reasoning is simple: after a few weeks in successive states of emergency and in a general confinement of all people, with the exception of activities considered essential, today we are experiencing a second phase in which we try to create the conditions for recovery but unequivocally because the world is not exactly the same as two or three months ago.
Do you think the I League will really resume?
I have read and listened to many people taking the return of the First Soccer League for granted. When he asked me the initial question, he did it right because he highlighted the possibility that something might happen to prevent this return. It is that League I may not even resume and there is also the possibility that it will be even more dramatic, from my point of view, which is to resume competition and interrupt it again. That is why this possibility of resumption has been scheduled for the end of this month. We will be constantly monitoring and following up taking into account the contagion capacity of this disease. An understanding will be needed between the Portuguese Football Federation, more specifically the specialists involved by the FPF, with the specialists from the General Directorate of Health who are working to guarantee a set of conditions that imply the health of the participants and the health public. in a general way.
What is the reason for resuming the First League and suspending the Second League?
Even before the State intervened through the Government, this was a consensual matter because it is public that there was a meeting with the Government and the Portuguese Football Federation, before the League and the three representatives of the Portuguese clubs , where there was soon a lot of work done with the specialists appointed by the Portuguese Football Federation and the General Directorate of Health. On the one hand, and at a time when we want to minimize risk, it is clear that we are maximizing risk if we extend it to a larger population; On the other hand, there is an economic problem, but this problem was not considered when it was decided to cancel the II League. We all know that clubs have generally expressed their financial difficulties because there is no resumption of the championship and that this can have a fatal financial impact on these clubs. There, the existing risk is accepted, however low it may be. It is this balance that must be found.
Editorial note: interview carried out last Thursday, May 7, before the rules defined by the DGS for the resumption of the I League were known.
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