The FA Cup will go ahead as planned this weekend along with the rest of professional sport despite the government’s announcement of a new national lockdown on Monday night that has wiped out the amateur sporting calendar.
All grassroots competitions and outdoor venues such as golf courses, tennis courts and pools have been instructed to close immediately, but top-level sport will be able to continue under the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s elite sporting protocols.
The exemption means that Premier League fixtures and the FA Cup third round matches, which kick-off on Friday night, can go ahead despite the presence of several sides from lower down the football pyramid.
Professional sport will continue as normal in England despite the new lockdown measures
Three non-league teams – Marine, Borehamwood and Chorley – remain in the FA Cup, but it is understood their ties can go ahead because the tournament is classed as an elite competition.
Marine host Premier League side Tottenham, Chorley face Derby and Borehamwood play Millwall.
There are concerns over whether divisions below the National Conference North and South can continue following Monday night’s announcement, whilst Premier League clubs are also seeking clarification over whether their Academy sides can continue to play and train under the new restrictions, which are far more stringent than the November lockdown.
Meanwhile, the FA have no intentions of punishing players who breach Covid regulations away from football.
The news followed that of Scotland’s, who confirmed elite sport will also continue as normal
A host of high-profile footballers have been accused of flouting Government restrictions in recent days, leading to calls for the players in question to be formally reprimanded by the sport’s governing body.
But the jurisdiction for punishment away from the sport does not lie with the FA but rather with the clubs.
An FA disrepute charge could trigger competitive suspensions for players but while officials have taken a particularly dim view of some footballers behaviour in recent days, it is understood the protocols breaches that have emerged do not fall within the organisation’s remit.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson unveiled a brutal new lockdown on Monday evening
This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk