EuroLeague basketball games in Italy to be relocated

By Fatih Erel

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkish Airlines EuroLeague basketball games in Italy will be relocated due to the coronavirus outbreak.

"EuroLeague Basketball has been forced to temporarily suspend the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague and 7DAYS EuroCup games in Italy at least until April 11 and to relocate those games to other territories," EuroLeague announced on Wednesday.

Italy is the worst-hit European country by coronavirus, with a death toll reaching 631.

The following games will be moved to alternate arenas outside of Italy:

- AX Armani Exchange Milan EuroLeague Regular Season Round 29 against Olympiacos Piraeus.

- AX Armani Exchange Milan EuroLeague Regular Season Round 32 against LDLC Asvel Villeurbanne.

- AX Armani Exchange Milan EuroLeague Regular Season Round 34 against CSKA Moscow.

- Segafredo Virtus Bologna EuroCup Quarterfinals Game 2 against AS Monaco.

- Umana Reyer Venice EuroCup Quarterfinals Game 2 against Unicaja Malaga.

Euroleague will decide the final venue of each game during the following days.

As the world struggles to contain the rapidly spreading virus, fallout has forced numerous organizers of sports events across the globe to cancel or alter their plans.

International sports events were canceled or rescheduled and some will be played without spectators as the virus continues to threaten global health.

The global death toll from the virus known as COVID-19 has surpassed 4,250, with over 118,000 confirmed cases, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

The virus originated in China but has reached more than 100 countries, with the WHO saying Monday that the “threat of a pandemic has become very real.”

As part of efforts to contain the outbreak, some governments closed borders and suspended land and air travel with the worst-hit countries.