On April 28, French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announced that the 2019-20 Ligue 1 season was ended due to the pandemic. It was a shocking decision for clubs in France, as well as for the Professional Football League.

With Paris Saint-Germain at the top of the table 12 points clear and with a game in hand, the French confederation declared the Parisians as Champions of the Ligue 1.

At that time, it seemed plausible, as Holland and Belgium had also done the same with their domestic Leagues. However, a few weeks after the decision, the situation in Europe improved, and the German Bundesliga had set a date to resume the season, frustrating French President Emmanuel Macron, who was trying to convince other big leagues to also cancel their Leagues.

France’s decision to cancel Ligue 1 was met with skepticism, mainly from UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin, who spoke this week at beIN SPORTS about what he thought of the decision, but also how he felt about the clubs that were affected.

“For us, the important thing is to know who is the champion, who is the second, who is the third and the fourth. My personal opinion is that to cancel a season too early, it is not an ideal scenario, because things can improve a lot and everyone can play, except for some leagues. But then again, if it is a government decision, what can clubs do? Or the league? They cannot do anything. But for me the decision was premature. But it doesn’t affect UEFA, so it’s their decision.”

The decision was even more complex by the fact that two French clubs remain in the UEFA Champions League, and they are PSG, who had qualified to the quarterfinals after defeating Borussia Dortmund, and Lyon, who still need to face Juventus in Italy in the second leg of the Round of 16.

When the decision was made, I even agreed with France, as PSG wasn’t denied their deserved title, and the situation seemed way worse than it is now. However, as UEFA President Ceferin said, the decision was premature, as well as in Holland, and now they must face the consequences of that.