K-League: South Korea’s football season kicks off with no fans

South Korea's top-flight professional football league kicked off for the new season on Friday.

The league opened with a match between defending champions Jeonbuk Motors and Suwon Bluewings in the southwestern city of Jeonju.

The K-League had been scheduled to start February 29 but on that day there were 909 recorded coronavirus infections - the country's highest daily total.

After weeks of extensive testing and tracing, that number has fallen to single figures since mid-April.

Soccer authorities have regularly consulted with medical experts and were advised that if the number of new cases fell below 30 for two weeks, then the league season could start.

There are restrictions, however. No fans will be allowed in stadiums, many which were built for the 2002 World Cup and have capacities of over 40-thousand.

K-League officials are hopeful that this will change within weeks, rather than months.

According to Johns Hopkins University, South Korea has 10,840 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 256 deaths.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, that clear up in two to three weeks. But it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death for some people, especially older adults and people with existing health problems.