Due to the global spread of Coronavirus, controlling the outbreak has been a major point of discussion everywhere.

In a very shocking and unprecedented move, the four major American sports leagues: the National Football League (NFL), Major League Baseball (MLB), Major League Soccer (MLS), National Basketball Association (NBA), and the National Hockey Association (NHL), issued a statement implementing a temporary ban of locker room access for media and some staff after games and practice due to the CoronaVirus, effective Tuesday, March 10th.

The statement is as follows:

“After consultation with infectious disease and public health experts, and given the issues that can be associated with close contact in pre- and post-game settings, all team locker rooms and clubhouses will be open only to players and essential employees of teams and team facilities until further notice. Media access will be maintained in designated locations outside of the locker room and clubhouse setting. These temporary changes will be effective beginning with tomorrow’s games and practices. We will continue to monitor this situation and take any further steps necessary to maintain a safe and welcoming environment.”

The NFL will comply when the pre-season starts in August if needed.

This comes in the wake of many leagues, mainly the NBA requiring organizations to come up with plans to help contain the virus if need be.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver stated last week that teams should be prepared to operate with staff only deemed,”essential,” and without fans in the arena if need be.

The Corona Virus has made an impact on many worldwide events, the CBA(Chinese Basketball Association) suspended their season in February.

The city of Austin has canceled the SXSW festival for the first time ever due to the CoronaVirus.

The ongoing spread of the virus might even cancel this year’s Olympics in Tokyo.