Russian Premier League to resume matches on June 21

FILE PHOTO: Russian Premier League - FC Krasnodar v Lokomotiv Moscow - Krasnodar Stadium, Krasnodar, Russia - April 30, 2018. Lokomotiv Moscow’s Ari in action with FC Krasnodar's Yuri Gazinski. REUTERS

Russia's top professional soccer league will resume matches on June 21 after having suspended the season in mid-March because of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Russian Football Union said on Friday.

The decision comes after several other European professional leagues, including Germany's Bundesliga, announced their return to the pitch.

The Russian Football Union said on Twitter its executive committee would allow teams in the Russian Premier League to make five substitutions per match when they restart next month.

The Russian Premier League said no final decision had yet been taken on whether the remaining games this season will be played behind closed doors.

The league put forward a plan last month to resume action on June 21 or June 28. No matches have been played in Russia's 16-team top-flight since March 16.

Champions Zenit St Petersburg lead the standings on 50 points after 22 matches played. Lokomotiv Moscow and Krasnodar are second and third respectively, nine points behind the leaders.

Some regions in Russia have begun lifting lockdown measures but the authorities in Moscow, the area that has been most badly hit by the novel coronavirus, have ordered the shutdown to remain in place until the end of the month.

Russia had recorded 262,843 coronavirus cases and 2,418 deaths as of Friday.