Ivy League Schools Cancel Sports for Remainder Year

Ivy League schools around the country have decided to cancel fall and winter sports entirely this year amid the global pandemic. Any plans to reopen the seasons will have to start Jan. 1 of next year.

Many of these schools have students from all across the world seeking a premier education at the prestigious organizations. After analyzing the situation and realizing the hoops that would need to be jumped through to continue sports this fall, officials for the institutions elected to outright cancel them until next year.  

According to the Ivy League’s statement: “As athletics is expected to operate consistent with campus policies, it will not be possible for Ivy League teams to participate in intercollegiate athletics competition prior to the end of the fall semester.”

This is the first Division I conference to officially declare the cancellation of fall sports. The opportunity for competition to continue next spring has not been ruled out. Presidents of the institution ensured athletes would not lose a year of athletic eligibility and would still be allowed to practice under regulations, just not compete in sanctioned sporting events.

A major concern moving forward is whether or not other conferences will follow the trend set by the Ivy League. They were the first league to cancel basketball tournaments this past spring, and all other leagues followed suit. Now, they’re the first to cancel fall sports, and we’re waiting to find out if other leagues have the same inclination following the recent spike in coronavirus cases.

College sports bring in millions of dollars of revenue every year. The impact of a complete cancellation may cause a cascade of financial problems for schools and athletes across the country. 

With most fall sports set to kick off in late August, we will find out shortly whether our beloved college athletes will have the opportunity to compete this season. The entire season may be moved to next spring or could be completely cancelled. The recovery process for such a drastic decision will be long and arduous. The world has changed, and sports must change with it.

Written by: Cameron Jones