Bundesliga football could restart behind closed doors from May 9th, in an apparent sign that football across Europe is edging closer to a return.

The BBC report that Germany’s health minister and regional leaders are suggesting Bundesliga matches could potentially resume from May 9th. Unsurprisingly, the games would take place behind closed doors.

Bayern Munich chief executive Karl-Heinz Rummenigge says there are “positive signals” for football’s return. He added that “it is important that we carefully adhere to any legal and medical guidelines in order to minimise any health risk”.

The Bundesliga was actually one of the last top divisions to suspend footballing action. Germany also has a significantly lower death toll than the other top-five league countries, though.

The UK, Spain, France and Italy all have death tolls between 16k and 25k, whilst Germany are under 5k.

Clearly, their comparative success in containing the virus gives them greater confidence they can safely return to the pitches to play football again – albeit without any fans in the stadiums.

The Premier League won’t return in May. Unlike many Bundesliga clubs, English teams aren’t even back in training yet. If things go well in Germany, however, that could encourage other European leagues to follow suit.