French football matches will be played in front of fewer than 1,000 fans until April

All Ligue 1 matches in France will be played behind closed doors or with a maximum attendance of 1,000 spectators until April 15 due to the coronavirus outbreak, French Sports Minister Roxana Maracineanu said at a news conference today

Maracineanu said the restrictions had been decided in coordination with European partners, adding: “We are in an exceptional context and the sporting world must take part in this collective effort. I want to applaud the sense of responsibility and the solidarity that world actors are showing with whom I am in permanent contact.”

The decision comes after Paris Saint-Germain's Ligue 1 game against Strasbourg was postponed this past Saturday due to the virus.

Maracineanu also confirmed that France’s upcoming international football friendly matches against Ukraine (scheduled to be played in Paris on March 27) and Finland (scheduled for March 31 in Lyon) could also be impacted.

“If they can be postponed, they will be. If they cannot be, then they will have to happen with no more than 1,000 people in the stadium, she said.

(CNN)