Lille lost their owner this week but their draw against PSG maintained their position at the top of the league
By Adam White and Eric Devin for Get French
Football News
The return of football during the second half of 2020 following the Covid-19 outbreak across Europe in March has been more than a little surreal: no fans; goalposts disinfected at half-time; bizarre results; European competitions redesigned like international tournaments. However, the realities of the pandemic are now starting to truly hit. Lille’s ambitious project under owner Gérard Lopez was the first major casualty in
France this week, with more likely to follow. Perhaps most strangely, Lille’s display in their goalless draw against PSG on Sunday night shows that, crisis or not, they may yet win Ligue 1.
Among Europe’s major leagues, Ligue 1 is in a unique financial position. Whereas other divisions resumed their paused campaigns in June or July and continued to enjoy weighty TV deals to help them negate the loss of matchday revenue, French football instead managed to palm the big red button marked “self-destruct” on two occasions.