HAMBURG, Germany (AP) – Saturday’s German Bundesliga match between Leipzig and St. Pauli was canceled due to heavy snow, leaving other games in doubt.
St. Pauli, a club in Hamburg in northern Germany, said it had done “everything possible to hold the match safely” but it was not possible.
St. Pauli said he was particularly concerned about the difficulty of removing snow from the stadium’s roof, despite several days of snow removal operations.
The club added that it had been advised that canceling the match could reduce the strain on emergency services, transport networks and the medical system.
Snow fell across northern and eastern Germany on Friday, with more snow expected overnight. Long-distance rail services were suspended in many parts of the north, and road traffic was also disrupted.
It was not immediately clear when the match would take place. Leipzig are fourth in the Bundesliga with 18 teams, while St. Pauli are 16th.
Other top-flight matches scheduled for Saturday in areas affected by the heavy snowfall are Werder Bremen vs. Hoffenheim and Union Berlin vs. Mainz.
Bremen is asking fans to arrive early and avoid traveling by car if possible. Union fans volunteered this week to move snow and ice around the team’s stadium in the German capital.
This will be the first match after the Bundesliga winter break. The Women’s Bundesliga is on winter break until January 23rd.
In the Netherlands, the men’s top division match between NEC Nijmegen and Utrecht scheduled for Friday was called off early due to weather forecasts. Other Dutch top-flight matches scheduled for the weekend will go ahead, but matches in the second division have been postponed.
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