The BetVictor Isthmian League and BetVictor Southern League have suspended all of their matches until next weekend as the coronavirus outbreak devastates sport.
This Saturday's programme and next week's midweek fixtures were postponed by the competitions on Friday. Both competitions still hope to restart their seasons with officials promising to monitor the situation on a daily basis.
The full fixture programmes in both the BetVictor Northern Premier League and the Vanarama National League go ahead this weekend with the competitions monitoring the public health crisis.
Isthmian League chairman Nick Robinson said: “The safety and wellbeing of all those associated with the League – our players, volunteers, club officials, match officials and supporters – is our number one priority, and we are closely monitoring the situation and carefully following advice from Public Health England.
https://t.co/ZO8bD821Oq Coronavirus- matches postponed.
Statement from the board.#BetVictorIsthmian #isthmianleague
— The Isthmian League (@IsthmianLeague) March 13, 2020
“The board has decided that as an immediate step matches scheduled for tomorrow and next midweek will be postponed and we will review the situation daily as to when fixtures can recommence.
“We understand the enormous financial impact this will have on many clubs, but the board feels that it is better to err on the side of caution at this time.
“We hope that by taking this step we can delay the spread of the virus and we earnestly hope that with the right approach there will be as few persons as possible suffering either directly or indirectly.
“We look forward to the resumption of the fixtures as soon as possible.”
The Spartan South Midlands League and Northern Counties East Football League both suspended their competitions until further notice on Friday as a number of other Non-League competitions consider following suit.
ALL SOUTHERN LEAGUE MATCHES POSTPONED Further to discussions this afternoon, a decision has been taken that ALL BETVICTOR SOUTHERN LEAGUE matches will be POSTPONED betwee… Read More on our website at https://t.co/FBn5ntajXo pic.twitter.com/0CjuwHRgsC
— The Southern League (@SouthernLeague1) March 13, 2020
Non-League's senior competitions were weighing up suspending their campaigns as the spread of coronavirus saw all elite football in the UK suspended until at least 3 April.
All Premier League games, EFL fixtures and matches in the FA Women's Super League and Women's Championship were postponed for at least the next three weeks on Friday morning.
The remainder of the Scottish football season was also postponed indefinitely on Friday morning over fears around fans helping to spread the virus.
Uefa also confirmed they were calling off all their competitions with next week's Champions League and Europa League matches all postponed because of the coronavirus outbreak.
Make sure you get your copy of The Non-League Paper on a Sunday for the latest news and action from across Non-League over the last seven days.
As well as exclusive match reports and pictures from all of Saturday's fixtures in the Vanarama National League and the BetVictor-sponsored Northern Premier League, The Non-League Paper's live coverage extends all the way to Steps 5 and 6.
