Belarusian league fills soccer void

Fans watch the Belarus Championship soccer match between Energetik-BGU and Bate in Minsk, Belarus. Unlike most of Europe, Belarus football runs on a calendar-year format, playing from March through December to avoid the snow-bound winter, and insists it has no plans to postpone fixtures. Photo: AP Photo/Sergei Grits

With professional soccer at a virtual standstill around the globe, fans in need of their weekly fix are turning to the Belarusian Premier League to fill the void as it carries on with matches despite the coronavirus outbreak.

The league, one of Europe’s least glamorous competitions whose teams rarely reach the group stage of UEFA’s elite Champions League, is drawing foreign fans’ attention and a string of new broadcast deals.