PSG will be crowned Ligue 1 champions despite cancelled season: report

Paris Saint-Germain will be handed the Ligue 1 title after it was confirmed that the 2019-20 season would not resume. The currently halted season was indefinitely suspended on March 13. Since then, no professional football was played in France.

On Tuesday, the French government announced that all sporting events will be banned until September as a means to fight the novel coronavirus pandemic. Consequently, the French Football Federation (FFF) declared the cancellation of the current season.

It was uncertain whether the season would be declared void with no promotion nor relegation and no champion. But practically under normal circumstances, PSG has a commanding 12-point lead on top of the table.

The club was eager to return to the field, as declaring the season as void would have hurt their morale. It would have been unfortunate for Les Parisiens, given the amount of hard work the players had put in to sustain their position at the top.

An unconfirmed report has revealed that the defending champions may lift their seventh title very soon. French journalist Domenighetti Joel revealed as much in a tweet. As of now, official statements from the French football authorities and the club itself are yet to be released.

The Sun reports that PSG will be officially crowned champions based on a "points-per-game" model. This means that the Ligue 1 table will remain as it was when play was halted, except for one slight change. The clubs that have played fewer games than the average games played in the tournament will be awarded additional points based on the "points-per-game" they have actually received.

When football was paused in France, every side in Ligue 1 had played 28 games, except PSG and Strasbourg, who played 27 games each.

PSG boasts a points-per-game ratio of 2.5, which ensures that their lead would only expand if the ratio is applied to their remaining one game.

Strasbourg, currently at 11th spot, would move up to the 10th position in case their ratio of 1.4 points-per-game is applied to their missing match.

It has been understood that Marseille and Rennes would qualify for next season's UEFA Champions League alongside PSG, while Lille and Reims will reach the UEFA Europa League.

Recently, UEFA had asked league authorities to select clubs for next season's European competitions based on their "sporting merit." This strategy has been put in place in case the domestic leagues are not finished due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Now that all sporting events are banned in France until September, PSG and Lyon have to find alternate grounds outside of the country in order to organise their Champions League home encounters. UEFA is aiming to resume the European club championship in August.