German football authorities are set to announce plans on Thursday for Bundesliga matches

German football authorities are set to announce plans on Thursday for Bundesliga matches to restart on May 9 in empty stadiums, but the potential return in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic is meeting some opposition. Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government is slowly easing nationwide restrictions and the resumption of the Bundesliga, which was halted on March 13, would boost morale in football-mad Germany. It would also make the Bundesliga the first top-flight European league to begin playing again. Large public events are banned in Germany until August 31, yet football could resume without spectators — known as “ghost games” in German. Germany has more testing capacity than other European countries and players could be tested regularly.The 18 clubs have been back in training for three weeks, albeit in small groups with social distancing observed even on the pitch.Having already been given signs of encouragement by politicians, the German Football League (DFL) is set to iron out details in Thursday’s video conference meeting of the clubs.