As most people know by now, the outbreak of the Corona Virus has meant hibernation for the football season with all leagues now suspended until further notice and non-essential public gatherings now banned to stop any more spread. However, this doesn’t apply to Belarus, who as of the 30th of March, is the only footballing league still open and playing every week. The fact that the league has stayed open has led to the Belarus Football Federation getting broadcasting deals with sports networks in ten countries, including Russia and India.
Many players and followers of the league have had their say on the league’s decision to stay open with BATE icon and former Arsenal player, Alexander Hleb, criticising the federation and country’s attitude to the virus in general, stating that “in Belarus, it’s like no one cares (about the virus).” Players in the league have also benefitted from this new attention despite playing behind closed doors with match revenue increasing significantly for clubs and players having the spotlight shone on them.
Alexander Stok, a chairman for one of the league’s most established teams, Dinamo Minsk, has stated that they ‘hope it will improve the level of the game because the players may get more responsible.”
However many fans have taken action into their own hands with stadiums looking more empty this season, with Saturday’s game that saw Minsk beat their rivals, Dynamo Minsk 3-2, having an attendance of around 50%.
If you are interested in following the league and its progression over the next few weeks, here is a little context for how the season is currently playing out and some context about some of the teams too.
Dynamo Minsk were champions of the last year’s season with BATE Borisov, holders for the most consecutive league titles won in a row with 12, coming second, ending their dominant streak. Both clubs made appearances in the qualifiers for the Europa League after BATE had lost their Champions League qualifier match against Rosenborg 3-2 on aggregate. Both teams also failed to make it into Europa league too. However, two weeks into the league and BATE and Dynamo Minsk sit 14th and 13th respectively, both on 0 points.
Minsk are currently first in the league taking wins from both their first two games. Energetyk-BGU, Isloch and Torpedo BelAZ also all sit on 6 points. So, with these early shocks in the league, this season is bound to be a good one.
While the league is currently unavailable to stream due to issues with TV rights, you can follow the matches and results on apps such as One Football which will give you all the latest scores and updates for free.
