The German Football League (DFL) on Thursday said it is adopting "two-stage quarantine measures" for teams in the top two divisions for the final three rounds of the season to ensure the campaign finishes well in time for the European Championship.
With no room on the calendar for postponed league matches with Euro 2020 taking place from June 11-July 11, the DFL is looking to minimise exposure to the coronavirus by providing extra safeguards so they can finish the season on May 23.
In the first stage, players, coaches and staff must stay in their home environment or on the training ground from May 3 -- effectively a "quasi quarantine".
From May 12, all individuals who test negative for COVID-19 from the 36 clubs in Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 are to enter a quarantine training camp which is compulsory until the final matchday on May 22-23.
"The purpose of the quarantine training camps is to provide extra safeguards for the staging of matches, particularly in view of the time pressure caused by UEFA Euro, which follows the regular season," the DFL said in a statement.
"It is the clubs' responsibility to ensure that players, coaches and training staff come into contact with no one but each other during the stated period."
The decision was taken after the DFL's executive committee was authorised in December to arrange quarantine training camps to ensure the fixtures are completed without any issues.
(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru; editing by Ken Ferris) ((Rohith.Nair@thomsonreuters.com;))
