Bundesliga ready for May restart, but fans may be locked out next March

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Christian Seifert, chief executive of the German Football League (DFL), told a news conference Thursday that the Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga will be ready to restart by May 9 if the government deems it safe during the pandemic.

However, Seifert admitted, "We don't know if there will be games without fans in February or March," according to The Associated Press. Clubs have been told not to expect matchday revenue "for the first part" of the 2020-21 season.

"If we should start on May 9, we are ready. If it is later we will be ready again," Seifert declared after holding a meeting with the 36 professional clubs in the Bundesliga and second tier, according to Constantin Eckner of BBC Sport.

"For us what is decisive is what the politicians will decide. It is not for us to decide when."

The German government has already ruled out large events with crowds until at least Oct. 24, and Eckner believes a cap on the number of people allowed for public gatherings will be determined by the end of April. Reuters reports German football is planning to allow a maximum of 213 officials inside the stadium and a further 109, including security staff, outside venues.

Bundesliga players' on-pitch preparations are already underway. Some clubs returned to practice as early as the start of April while adhering to strict COVID-19 guidelines.

The DFL also negotiated a payment agreement with almost all of its national media partners during the 2019-20 season's shutdown to help keep clubs afloat while there is no spectator income. The league's operators believe this will provide enough financial liquidity until the 2019-20 term's official end date of June 30 and once the 2020-21 campaign gets underway.

Germany's response to the coronavirus pandemic has been rather successful when compared to other European countries. The country is the fifth-worst hit in the world with over 151,000 confirmed cases, but a testing program introduced soon after Germany's outbreak has resulted in a relatively low death toll of 5,354.