Amidst general concern regarding the global COVID-19 pandemic, the Slovak regional football associations decided to start the 2020-2021 season of the 3. Liga in the next week-end, on the 1st of August (Saturday) and the 2nd of August (Sunday), for the East and Central groups, and in the other week-end, on the 7th and 8th of August, for the West and Bratislava groups. The first match of the 2020-2021 3. Liga will actually be played on Friday, the 31st of July, between TJ Tatran Oravské Veselé and FK Cadca, at 5:30 pm local time (3:30 pm UTC), in the Stred (Central) Group. Most of the 3. Liga teams have already played an official match in the first round of the Slovakian Cup, on the 25th or 26th of July 2020.
The four groups will basically start with the same 16 teams each, as the 2019-2020 was cancelled, and there was no promotion to 2. Liga or relegation to 4. Liga. However, there are slight changes, because several teams withdrew from the competition. This happened even in the 2. Liga, where Ružomberok B (the second team of Super League team Ružomberok) withdrew, and apparently the 2. Liga will start in the next week-end with only 15 teams.
The number of withdrawn teams is higher in the 3. Liga, where the COVID-19 pandemic had a bigger impact on club budgets. In the Východ (East) Group, three teams have withdrawn: FK Poprad B, OŠFK Šarišské Michal'any and TJ Vel'ké Revištia. They have been replaced by MŠK Spišské Podhradie, Slávia TU Košice and FK Sobrance - Sobranecko. Initially, only FK Poprad B withdrew, and the Východ (East) Regional Football Association agreed to admit both MŠK Spišské Podhradie (2nd classified in the 2018-2019 4. Liga North) and Slávia TU Košice (2nd classified in the 2018-2019 4. Liga South) in their place, therefore increasing the number of participants to 17. It is worth mentioning that these two teams, MŠK Spišské Podhradie and Slávia TU Košice, were clear leaders of the two eastern 4. Liga groups when the 2019-2020 season was cancelled, and were therefore the main candidates for promotion to the 2020-2021 3. Liga - Východ (East) Group.
Then, when OŠFK Šarišské Michal'any eventually withdrew, the number of teams was reduced to the usual 16. The final change (so far) occurred when TJ Vel'ké Revištia changed their name (and actually their location) to FK Sobrance - Sobranecko. The new team officially acquired all the rights and the history of TJ Vel'ké Revištia, while unofficially it is clearly related to the former MFK Sobrance, a club which competed in the 4. Liga - South, and finished 7th at the end of the 2018-2019 season, the last season which was completed, and were in the 13th position when the 2019-2020 season was interrupted and then cancelled. MFK Sobrance no longer enrolled for the 2020-2021 4. Liga, so it pretty much looks like a transfer of places between the two teams, made according to the legal regulations, or rather bypassing the regulations. It is worth mentioning that TJ Vel'ké Revištia were last classified and seemed to be in big trouble when the 2019-2020 3. Liga season was interrupted and then cancelled. No team from Vel'ké Revištia is enrolled in any league so far for the 2020-2021 season.
With one exception, matches in the first round of the 3. Liga - Východ (East) Group will all kick off at 4.30 pm local time (2.30 pm UTC) on the 1st and 2nd of August. The fixtures are the following:
MFK Vranov nad Topl'ou - MŠK Spišské Podhradie (Saturday, 4:30 pm)
FK Humenné - ŠK Odeva Lipany (Saturday, 4:30 pm)
FK NOVES Spišská Nová Ves - 1. FK Svidník (Saturday, 4:30 pm)
Slávia TU Košice - FK POKROK SEZ Krompachy (Sunday, 10:30 am)
TJ Mladost' Kalša - 1. FC Tatran Prešov (Sunday, 4:30 pm)
MŠK Tesla Stropkov - Millenium 2000 Bardejovská Nová Ves (Sunday, 4:30 pm)
MFK Snina - FK Sobrance-Sobranecko (Sunday, 4:30 pm)
FK Družstevník Plavnica - MFK Slovan Giraltovce (Sunday, 4:30 pm)
The second round will be played on Wednesday, the 5th of August, kicking off at 4:30 pm local time, while the third round will be played during the next week-end, on the 8th and 9th of August, also kicking off at 4:30 pm local time.
It is hard to predict which teams will be involved in the fight for promotion and to avoid relegation. If one considers the situation of the 2019-2020 cancelled season, 1. FC Tatran Prešov, ŠK Odeva Lipany, MFK Vranov nad Topl'ou and FK Humenné would be the candidates for the top spot. However, the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated economic crisis might have changed the strengths of the teams, therefore it is almost impossible to tell which teams will be most likely to be on top positions or in the lower part of the classification.
1. FK Svidník were in a bad situation even before the pandemic. They had a good first part of the 2019-2020 season, and were classified 9th (out of 16) after 17 rounds, when the competition was interrupted and then cancelled. This was a mid-table position which involved no stress for the second part of the season. However, just like everyone else, their last official game was played in November 2019. Problems at the club began in winter, when the club president, Jozef Žák, faced certain legal issues. By February 2020, the situation at the club worsened, as training sessions did not resume properly and on time to prepare the spring part of the season. The COVID-19 pandemic postponed a decision regarding the club management. In June 2020, the club enrolled for the 3. Liga and head coach Róbert Petruš said that he hopes the club is able to start the season and to solve the financial issues with the players, who haven't been paid in months.
1. FK Svidník head coach Róbert Petruš standing in front of the bench where club president Jozef Žák (in white, with a medical bag on his lap) is seated next to some of the players.
Source: Ladislav Lukáč (Korzár Prešov)
They will start the league just like a year ago, with an away match at Spišská Nová Ves on Saturday, then comes the local derby against Tesla Stropkov at home on Wednesday, and again away at MFK Snina the next Sunday. Three difficult matches in the first three rounds. More details about the situation at the club and the news regarding the roster will be probably available soon. For the moment, the club website has completely disappeared (it was anyway outdated and unchanged for at least 2 years) and the Facebook page is yet silent. Not even the local weekly newspaper Poddukliansky Novinky has published any news related to the club lately.
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