CONFIRMED: The Bundesliga will return Saturday 16th May after coronavirus lockdown!

Deutscher Fußball Liga (DFL) CEO Christian Seifert confirmed today in a press conference that the Bundesliga will official resume on Saturday, May 16th:

Yesterday, the DFL confirmed an approximate starting day from mid-may in their official statement following the green light from Chancellor Angela Merkel and German Government. Today, the official starting date was confirmed: the Bundesliga will restart on the 16th of May!

One of the first official Bundesliga matches will be Revierderby between Borussia Dortmund & Schalke 04. Furthermore, there will be two Sunday matches and one Monday match included in the first match week since the league was halted due to the coronavirus.

FC Bayern Munich will be playing Union Berlin on Sunday, May 17th at 18:00 CET (11:00 am American Central time). Other matchups will include:

Other details of Seifert’s press conference revealed specific hygiene requirements for the referees as well as confirming the possibility of five substitutions but ultimately conceded that it will fall upon FIFA to make that final decision. Seifert also mentioned some details regarding TV coverage but that more details will follow as they figure out the specifics. Seifert also stressed that each match day players will be an opportunity to prove they deserve the following match day as he concedes that a lot of the decision making regarding health and safety is still on the local level.

Regardless, the countdown to the Bundesliga’s return is officially on at 9 days and 10 days for FC Bayern Munich’s return!