Play has resumed in the Premier League after a 100-day suspension because of the coronavirus outbreak.
Sheffield United kicked off against Aston Villa inside a virtually empty Villa Park stadium after a minute’s silence to honor those who have died in the pandemic.
The game began with every player and the referee taking a knee in a tribute to George Floyd, a black man who was killed in the United States last month after a white police officer pressed a knee into Floyd’s neck for several minutes as he pleaded for air and eventually stopped moving.
Aston Villa released a statement, which read: “Aston Villa and Sheffield United were proud to stand in solidarity with the actions of the players and coaching staff of both football clubs during the first ten seconds of tonight’s Premier League fixture, expressing our collective support for the Black Lives Matter movement.
“In the first Premier League fixture of Project Restart both clubs hope that the act of ‘taking a knee’ will send a strong message of unity and amplify the many messages of support from Premier League players and the wider football family.
“The directors of both clubs, Dean Smith, Chris Wilder, Jack Grealish and Billy Sharp and the players of United and Villa are in full support of this action.
“We believe that ‘taking a knee’ at the start of the fixture and after the pre-match minute’s silence, allowed both clubs to pay their respects to COVID-19 victims and to show the deep gratitude we all feel for our brave and selfless front-line workers.”
Players maintained social distancing as they lined up after entering the field.
Manchester City will host Arsenal in the other match being played Wednesday.
England is the latest leading European soccer nation to resume play after Germany, Spain and Italy.
