Postponing football matches across the UK feels like an opportunity missed

There was a national mourning of King George VI in February 1952. Many sports events were cancelled, but football played on. The FA secretary proposed playing the matches with the playing of Abide With Me, followed by a minute’s silence and the national anthem. Some people were upset about it. A letter written to The Times complained about the lack of sports activities. The newspaper covered the Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur game. It was the most eye-catching league fixture that weekend. In the Times, the sports coverage was dominated by Wimbledon's victory over Corinthian Casuals in the FA Amateur Cup.

Postponing football matches across the UK feels like an opportunity missed. The Athletic's Jack Pitt-Brooke wonders if football is trying to be seen to do the right thing. The Premier League is suspended between mid-November and December 26 to accommodate the World Cup finals in Qatar. For the 10 British clubs involved in the three European competition, the calendar was already looking severely crammed. To have carried on reluctantly, on the basis that a congested fixture schedule left them with no alternative, would have been wrong. It should be a matter of principle rather than convenience.