Premier League begins removing emergency Covid rules with aim to end measures completely by March | Football News

The Premier League has announced a number of its Covid-19 emergency measures will be removed from Friday, with the aim of more ending by the end of the month.

The extra measures were re-introduced in December during the rise of the Omicron variant of coronavirus, meaning clubs have had to increase player and staff testing, wear face coverings indoors and limit treatment sessions to a maximum of 15 minutes.

From Friday, coverings will no longer be required in indoor spaces, and the limit on treatment will also be scrapped, while testing will drop down to twice weekly.

In a statement, the Premier League also confirmed it plans to drop the other emergency measures by the end of February.

Last month, the league agreed matches should only be postponed if a minimum of four positive Covid cases were found in a team’s playing squad.

A statement released on Thursday read: “At today’s Premier League shareholders’ meeting, it was decided to remove a number of the Covid-19 emergency measures from Friday, 11 February.

“While the requirement to ensure social distancing indoors is maintained, restrictions such as wearing face coverings in indoor areas and limiting treatment time will be removed. Lateral flow testing for players and relevant club staff will revert to twice weekly from Monday, 14 February.

“The Premier League’s Covid-19 emergency measures remain under regular review, with the aim of them expiring at the end of this month.”