May 18 – The Jamaican FA (JFF) has declared its 2019-20 season null and void “for all levels of competition, nationally and in the parishes with a “tentative” start date for the 2020-21 season set for September.
In a statement from JFF president Michael Ricketts, he said the decision was taken after internal consultation and with the Jamaican minister of sports and Jamaican Ministry of health and Wellness..
The decision means that no champions will be declared for 2019-20 season and there will be no relegation. “All teams will retain their ranking as of September 2019 and be eligible to participate in the 2020-2021 season of competitions if they so desire,” said the statement.
“In order to ensure balance for all competitions, especially those that have a promotion and relegation policy…the next season should continue with determinations from the completion of the 2018-2019 season.”
Ricketts said the league had examined whether it was possible to play the season without crowds but this was considered impractical with about 90% of matches played in open venues that would not permit entry controls, on top of the restriction in movement of stakeholders and the risk factors including mode of transportation to and from training and matches, as well as the challenges for sanitization management.
A Covid-19 testing regime was also considered but the JFF decided that the protocols required both impractical and cost prohibitive.
“The JFF was also concerned re the cost ramification for a lot of the stakeholders, especially the professional arm, for delaying a cancellation decision. In other words, the prolonging or procrastination will have untold financial burden on some clubs,” said Ricketts.
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