Bundesliga season return pushed back at least to May 16th, and possibly longer

There were hopes that the Bundesliga would bring top-flight club football back to the world as soon as May 9th. However those have been dashed with an announcement today from the German government that the nation isn’t quite ready for soccer to return.

The decision was made this afternoon by German Chancellor Angela Merkel in consultation with ministers of 16 states. The next governmental meeting is scheduled for May 6th, at which time we might get some more clarity about when they season could resume.

“The contact restrictions will certainly now be extended until May 10 for the time being,” said Merkel’s chief of staff Helge Braun today. No matter when they resume, the matches upon return will be “ghost games” or “geisterspiele” in German where no fans will be in attendance. Some ultras for Borussia Mönchengladbach will be there in spirit via pictures of themselves posted to cardboard.

“Caution remains the imperative — we must remain disciplined,” said Merkel in her address today. And for now, the largest nation in Europe has decided to slow down the process of the return of soccer for at least a week.