Preston North End's visit to Luton Town to go ahead as EFL say games continue amid coronavirus outbreak

It means Preston North End will travel to Kenilworth Road to face Luton Town as scheduled on Saturday.

There had been speculation that games could be moved behind closed doors or football suspended until the peak of the outbreak was over.

Several countries have cancelled sporting events in a bid to curb the spread of the illness.

In a statement released on Thursday evening, the EFL said the situation would continually be monitored and advice taken from the Government.

On Thursday afternoon, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said a ban could eventually be put in place on sporting events although the main reason for doing that would be to ease the burden on public services and not because it would help stop the spread of Covid-19.

The EFL's statement read: "In light of today’s announcement by the UK Government, EFL matches will continue to take place as normal while the guidance from the relevant authorities remains that there is no medical rationale to close or cancel sporting events at this time.

"The EFL, however, will continue to work with Government and relevant stakeholders to further develop contingency plans to ensure the League is best placed to act as and when any potential restrictions may come into force.

"Immediately following the announcement by the Prime Minister, EFL Chair Rick Parry held discussions with the FA and Premier League and agreed on a consistent approach ahead of this weekend’s round of fixtures.

"Matters will be further discussed at a meeting called by European Football’s Governing body, UEFA, on Tuesday 17 March.

"The League will continue to liaise with the Government regarding ongoing developments and will continue to work with Clubs to ensure players, staff and supporters are updated and appraised accordingly.

"These matters are, of course, subject to change and we will update as appropriate."

Following Saturday's trip to Luton, North End are scheduled to play two games at Deepdale next week.

They face Cardiff City on Wednesday night and then Derby County a week on Saturday - the visit of the Rams will see PNE become the first team to play 5,000 league games.