The uncertainty surrounding next season

As much as I've tried to weigh up the reasons both for and against the possibility of a 2020/21 EIHL season, I just can't see it happening with the ongoing coronavirus situation. It seems to me like there's simply too many factors affecting it that can't be ignored or combated at all. For a league that I feel has made a tone of progress in recent seasons, this will be a massive setback, possibly one not seen since the dramatic collapse of the BISL in 2002/03 which led to the formation of today's British top flight. 

It's common knowledge that gate money is the main source of revenue for clubs, and without that, running the league just wouldn't be functional if we were to have games behind closed doors. British hockey absolutely needs crowds. This isn't like football, where teams continue to make obscene amounts through TV money, sponsorship and even merchandise in a sport which is a true global phenomena that hockey in this country will not come remotely close to. 

What would happen if the season did go ahead? Surely there'd have to be a testing protocol as there is on a regular basis in football? League One and Two had to cancel their seasons because many clubs couldn't afford that testing, so I struggle to see how teams in the EIHL, a few of whom often didn't even get four figure attendances last season, would be able to cope. A few social media raffles can only get you so far. 

Then there's the fact that teams will be bringing up to thirteen imports into the country who, as it stands, would have to quarantine for two weeks. There's even talks that anyone entering Scotland would have to do so as well, which doesn't bode well in a UK wide league. Teams who have already been financially hit would be paying players to literally sit inside, all for a game or three that would span a weekend. Do you temporarily resolve it with a separate English and Scottish league? I literally don't have the slightest clue how practical that would be, but you'd be looking at a significant drop down in quality, especially for Scottish teams if you're trying to make up the numbers with lower league teams. Do you really want the scorelines seen in Murrayfield Racers games? That's assuming we're involving SNL teams in Scotland (the Racers are winning games by at least 20 goals on a regular basis. It looks boring as hell). I won't delve any deeper into that scenario as it's very hypothetical and is extremely unlikely to happen. 

On the subject of lower league teams, I'd argue that if you want to watch any sort of live professional hockey this season, you're more likely to get it in the NIHL and SNL if the government were to put limits on crowds. There aren't many teams in these leagues who surpass 1,000 fans on game night so I'd say there's the very slightest glimmer of hope there regarding teams who play in rinks far bigger than their attendances to allow social distancing. Even then though, that's not the case on a wide scale basis, so you'd likely still be looking at smaller leagues. Yet again, this is a hypothetical idea that you shouldn't get your hopes up about too much. 

Another factor that doesn't seem to get talked about much is that viruses spread a lot more in cold temperatures so there'll be an issue piling thousands of people into a building with a gigantic block of ice in the centre. That's an added risk in itself which I don't think should be overlooked. 

The rumour that the Panthers may not even be participating if the season does go ahead spoke volumes to me. If one of the big budget clubs is hesitant it could suggest the situation is even more major than we perhaps thought. Then again, I guess every club has considered giving this season a miss at some point, so make of it what you will. Going slightly off topic, waiting until next year when our core, that we appear to be losing as of now, are likely free agents could be beneficial for our long term success. Silver linings and all that. 

So, what genuine reasons, with some sort of merit, are there to believe we will in fact have a season? First off, clubs are announcing players. Six clubs have done so, most notably Sheffield, who announced a staggering eight players in one day, establishing a solid core of their best players and adding to their Brit core, which was a statement of intent for sure. They'll surely be clauses in those contracts to opt out with ease should the season not go ahead in a time frame that suits them though. 

The second factor that could be considered is that the government are beginning to relax lockdown rules. Whether it's the right or wrong decision is another debate in itself, but I guess that could imply the possibility of crowds being allowed to return sooner than we think? I don't think so, especially with talk of the entirety of the 2020/21 football season being played behind closed doors, but it's worth looking at both sides of the conversation. 

All we can do right now is speculate but I will be truly gobsmacked if the league goes ahead before Christmas. The reasons I stated that it could happen can be very easily discounted as I explained, in comparison to the glaringly obvious reasons it won't happen.

 If you can spare a pound or two, I encourage you to enter the online raffles that many clubs are doing, as these could go a long way towards helping the league's survival. 

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