All English, Welsh and Northern Irish football and professional Scottish football have been suspended this weekend as a mark of respect following the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Ten Premier League games and six Scottish champions were scheduled. EFL matches were to be played on Friday and Saturday, with six Women’s Super League games – the first of the season – on Saturday and Sunday. England’s National League, FA Trophy and grassroots football are also out. Play will resume in England’s Test cricket against South Africa on Saturday and the women’s IT20 match between England and India will continue. The PGA Golf Championship will resume on Saturday after play was suspended on Thursday. British horse racing will return on Sunday, with rugby union’s Premiership season kicking off on Saturday after two games were postponed on Friday. The world boxing title fight between Savannah Marshall and Claressa Shields has been postponed, with a tentative date of October 15 being rescheduled. All British Boxing Board of Control tournaments have been postponed for the weekend. Sunday’s Great North Run will go ahead as planned, with organizers saying it is “an opportunity to come together and express our condolences by celebrating the life of our extraordinary Queen” and that the event will be “more subdued out of respect”. . Queen Elizabeth II, the United Kingdom’s longest-reigning monarch, died on Thursday at the age of 96, after a 70-year reign. The government’s national bereavement directive advised that the cancellation of matches was not mandatory, leaving the decision to individual sports. Government guidance for the day of the funeral also advised that cancellation was not mandatory, but suggested that events could be rescheduled so they did not conflict with service times. A minute’s silence was observed before practice at the Italian F1 Grand Prix
Cricket and rugby to play
International, domestic and recreational cricket in England will begin on Saturday. In golf, the PGA Championship will resume at 06:40 BST on Saturday and the event will now be played over 54 holes instead of 72. Players who were still competing when Thursday’s play stopped will complete their first round before the second round begins. The Rugby Union Premiership match between Bristol and Bath has been moved from Friday night to 17:30 BST on Saturday, while Sale v Northampton will be played on Sunday at 15:00 BST. All other Premiership games on Saturday and Sunday will go ahead as planned, but rugby in Wales has been suspended. Formula 1 observed a minute’s silence with all teams ahead of practice on Friday for the Italian Grand Prix, with the race weekend continuing as planned. At the US Open tennis in New York, a minute’s silence was observed before the women’s first semi-final on Thursday with the men’s first semi-final on Friday. In rugby league, the Super League play-off between the Catalan Dragons and Leeds is on Friday, with Huddersfield and Salford playing on Saturday. The Championship match between Sheffield Eagles and Dewsbury Rams has been postponed. The British Elite Ice Hockey League said the weekend’s season-opening games will go ahead as planned.
Football respects Queen’s ‘indelible legacy’
The Football Association said matches between September 9 and 11 have been postponed, adding that as a “long-standing patron” of the FA, the Queen “has left a lasting and indelible legacy on our national game”. The Premier League and EFL have confirmed that all matches will be rescheduled. While policing was not a factor in the postponement of this weekend’s Premier League games, it is understood it could be a factor in next weekend’s games, depending on the state’s funeral arrangements. There is confidence that the fixture congestion can be resolved in the second half of the season and a meeting will be held next week to discuss the calendar with the relevant bodies. The Premier League made the decision to honor the Queen’s “extraordinary life and contribution to the nation” and said updates on future games during the mourning period “will be provided in due course”. League chief executive Richard Masters said: “We and our clubs would like to pay tribute to Her Majesty’s long and steadfast service to our country. “This is an extremely sad moment not only for the nation but also for the millions of people around the world who admired her, and we join with all those who mourn her passing.” In Scotland, postponements include the Scottish Professional Football League, the Scottish Women’s Premier League and the Scottish Highland and Lowland Football Leagues, as well as Scottish Women’s Cup matches. SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster said it was appropriate to “mark the event with as much solemnity as possible” and added that there would be a further update “when we have clarity on the formal arrangements for Her Majesty’s funeral”.
WSL start record pending
The Women’s Super League was set to kick off the 2022-23 season this weekend with teams enjoying record ticket sales following England’s Euro 2022 summer success. Tottenham were to host Manchester United at the larger main stadium used by their male counterparts, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, while Chelsea were to host West Ham at Stamford Bridge. Tickets were sold out for Manchester City’s game against Arsenal at the 7,000-capacity Academy Stadium on Sunday. Reading have five times as many season ticket holders as last year, while champions Chelsea sold out of their 1,500 season tickets for the second consecutive season.
The Queen’s “enduring and unique” relationship with racing has been honoured
The British races were canceled on Saturday but will resume on Sunday, with the exception of Musselburgh in Scotland. The world’s oldest Classic, the St Leger, has been postponed by 24 hours and will feature on an extended nine-fight card in Doncaster. While Chepstow is also due to take place on Sunday, the Musselburgh meeting has been postponed due to the Queen’s layover in Edinburgh. British Horseracing Authority BHA chief executive Julie Harrington said the Queen had “an enduring and unique” relationship with the sport. “The return of racing on Sunday will see the running of the St Leger, one of Britain’s five Classic races and a race won by the Queen in her Dunfermline filly in 1977,” he said. “This will also provide an opportunity for the sport and its supporters to pay their respects to Her Majesty, to mark the contribution she has made to the sport.”
