The ongoing threat of the Covid-19 pandemic has once again put a question mark on the annual football league organised by the Jamshedpur Sporting Association. The popular tournament, one of the oldest sporting fixtures in the eastern zone, is likely to be cancelled for the second successive year.

"We don't think the tournament will be held this year either. At the most, we'll try to organise a programme to mark the platinum jubilee of the league," said association secretary Avinash Kumar, a former Bihar Ranji Trophy captain and senior manager at Tata Steel sports wing.

He added they were keeping their fingers crossed at this point in time.

The league's platinum jubilee was last year but the pandemic spoiled the celebrations.

"The fixture seems a non-starter at this stage. It cannot be organised since no preparations have been made as of now. We cannot go ahead even if the state government allows sports venues to re-open. It will take time to prepare the grounds. Moreover, we also need to draw up fixtures for the matches," a member of the association’s football sub-committee said.

The government will also need to announce guidelines on the resumption of tournaments, he added.

The tournament usually starts in May. It is played for nearly two months, with around 80 matches. As many as 44 clubs and institutions compete in the tournament held in the Premier Division, the Super Division and ‘A’ Division.

The tournament will be a non-starter even if Jamshedpur Sporting Associations officials plan to conduct the fixture sometime in October-November since venues will remain packed with other sporting events. But it all depends on how far the Covid-situation improves.

The event, patronised by Tata Steel, is conducted at the Keenan Stadium, Gopal Maidan, Armoury ground, Tinplate Sports Complex and Sumant Mulgaokar Stadium.