This list will be continuously updated.
As uncertainty continues over the growing COVID-19 pandemic, many sporting events and organizations are making changes to protect athletes, fans and staff.
From the MLB to high school sport to youth sports, athletes young and old are being impacted. The NBA, with a season that was nearing playoffs, has had multiple players test positive for the disease, including star Kevin Durant.
UIL extends suspension of all activities
The University Interscholastic League announced Thursday that all activities would remain suspended until at least May 4.
Activities covered in this suspension include contests, practices, rehearsals, and workouts.
“We are working diligently on contingency plans to conduct state championships in each of the activities that have been suspended,” said UIL Executive Director Dr. Charles Breithaupt.
The UIL could allow for practices and rehearsals before May 4 but no timeline was given.
PGA Tour cancels all events, including AT&T Byron Nelson tournament
On Tuesday March 17, the PGA Tour announced it would cancel all events through May 10, which includes the AT&T Byron Nelson tournament, which was slated for May 4-10.
NFL postpones off-season training activities indefinitely
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced Monday that NFL teams will indefinitely delay the start of their off-season programs. Off-season training was slated to begin April 6 for teams with new head coaches and April 20 for all other teams. Instead, teams will periodically meet and determine an appropriate start date for any more activities, according to a news release from the NFL.
In addition, each team's facilities will develop standard sets of protocol for cleaning.
This impacts the free agency period starting Wednesday, March 18 as well. NFL teams cannot bring any free agent to a team facility or meet with team personnel. Team personnel also may not travel to any location to meet with or conduct a medical examination of a free agent player. The league is working on ways for players to have a medical exam in their hometown or a nearby location.
All NFL teams will also close their facilities to players, other than those undergoing medically-supervised rehabilitation and treatment, for the next two weeks.
NASCAR cancels all races until May 3
NASCAR announced on its website Monday, March 16 that all races would be canceled through May 3.
"We appreciate the patience of our fans and we look forward to returning to the race track. We intend to hold all 36 races this season, with future rescheduling soon to be determined as we continue to monitor this situation closely with public health officials and medical experts."
As a result, the O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 Race Week is postponed indefinitely. The race was originally scheduled for March 27-29.
Texas Motor Speedway said in a Monday email that ticketholders on file may use their March 27-29, 2020 tickets for the postponed event, choose to receive an event credit for the full amount paid plus an additional 20%, or choose to receive a full refund of their purchase price. Read more at the track's website.
UIL suspends play
The University Interscholastic League announced Friday it is suspending all lay due to the COVID-19 outbreak in Texas.
Play is suspended from March 16 to March 29.
UIL is leaving it up to local districts about whether they will hold practice.
Masters postponed
The Masters announced Friday they are postponing the Masters Tournament, the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals.
According to information posted on the Masters website, the decisions was made because "the health and well-being of everyone associated with these events and the citizens of the Augusta community led us to this decision."
No makeup date has been set.
XFL cancels all regular-season games
XFL, the winter and spring professional football league launched by WWE CEO Vince McMahon, announced on Thursday that it won't play regular-season games because of the coronavirus.
NCAA cancels March Madness, all remaining winter and spring championships
Just a day after announcing that they'd hold the men's and women's basketball tournaments without fans in attendance, the NCAA has changed course, announcing that March Madness is canceled.
Both the men's and women's tournaments are canceled, as are all remaining winter and spring sports championships the NCAA would ordinarily put on.
The decision comes amid concerns over COVID-19, and in an effort to help stop the spread of the pandemic, as recognized by the World Health Organization this week.
The NCAA's decision comes on the heels of the NBA and NHL suspending their seasons, Major League Baseball suspending spring training and delaying the 2020 regular season start, and conference basketball tournaments around the country canceling one after the other Thursday.
Pressure was put on the NCAA by athletic programs such as Duke University and the University of Kansas, who announced they were suspending their athletic programs indefinitely.
Kansas and Duke are two of the bluebloods of college basketball. The prospect of a tournament without those two programs would not have been advantageous for the NCAA.
In the NCAA's statement, president Mark Emmert notes that "this decision is based on the evolving COVID-19 public health threat, our ability to ensure the events do not contribute to the spread of the pandemic, and the impracticality of hosting such events at any time during this academic year, given ongoing decisions by other entities."
MLB suspends spring training, delays opening day
A Major League Baseball statement released Thursday said all spring training games are canceled. The start of the regular season will be delayed by at least two weeks.
The statement says the decision Thursday afternoon by Commissioner Robert Manfred was made in the “interests of the safety and well-being of our players, clubs and our millions of loyal fans.”
The decision comes hours after the first major event at the newly-built Globe Life Field was rescheduled. Country singer Chris Stapleton and Willie Nelson were scheduled to perform there Saturday.
The Rangers officials said that public and group tours of the new stadium will be delayed until after the first public event takes place.
NASCAR to hold race events without fans
NASCAR has decided to hold its upcoming races at the Atlanta Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway without fans in attendance, the organization tweeted out Thursday afternoon.
The events will be limited "to competitors, crews, officials and other necessary personnel to conduct the race."
NHL to suspend 2020 season
The Dallas Stars were scheduled to play a game Thursday night at the American Airlines Center. But not anymore.
That game, and all other NHL games scheduled for Thursday, will not be played, as the league has announced they will suspend their season and follow the lead of the NBA and MLS.
UIL Boys State Basketball tournament suspended
The UIL State Basketball tournament for boys basketball has been suspended until further notice.
Two games had already been played Thursday morning, in the 1A State Semifinals, before the announcement. The 3A State Semifinal between Dallas Madison and Coldspring-Oakhurst had played the first half of action before the suspension came down.
They will complete the second half of the Madison/Oakhurst game and play the other 3A Semifinal between Peaster and San Antonio Cole, and then pause everything.
The UIL says "fans who purchased tickets for the postponed games will be issued full refunds at point of sale or from the school they purchased their tickets from."
They also note that fans who purchased All-Tournament tickets will receive full refunds.
College basketball on hold across the country
Conferences around the nation are canceling their conference tournaments— the lifeblood of the NCAA Tournament that feed conference champions into the tournament field—due to concerns over COVID-19.
The Big Ten, Big 12, the AAC (which was scheduled to play in Fort Worth at Dickies Arena), ACC, Conference-USA (scheduled for The Star in Frisco), the Pac-12, the Sun Belt and the WAC have all canceled their conference tournaments.
The Big East, however, did tip off in the beginning of its tournament, but canceled play after the first half of its first game was played.
That list is only expected to grow, as conference commissioners around the country come to the same realization that playing games amid this pandemic -- with fans or without -- is not tenable.
This will have massive impacts on the NCAA Tournament.
As of now, the NCAA has not announced any changes to their plan to put the tournament on as scheduled, but without the general public allowed in.
But without conference champions to fill out their field, there is at minimum the immediate question of who fills out the field.
And there is, obviously, the far more important question of whether it's prudent to play these games at all.
PGA Tour to go on, but without fans present
The PGA Tour will continue as scheduled but without fans through the Valero Texas Open in San Antonio, which is about a month away. The Masters is held the week after Valero.
American Athletic Conference cancels championship game at Dickie's Arena
The 2020 Air Force Reserve Men’s Basketball Championship has been canceled, AAC officials said Thursday morning. The game series was scheduled to be played from March 12 through 15 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth.
Officials said it was "a proactive decision to protect the safety, health and well-being of our student-athletes, coaches and staff and all involved with the tournament."
Major League Soccer suspends season for 30 days
Major League Soccer is suspending its season for 30 days, officials announced Thursday morning.
They said the decision was based on advice and guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Public Health Agency of Canada and other public health authorities.
Dallas Cup canceled, organizers announce
The international youth soccer tournament, "regarded as one of the most competitive in the world," has been canceled in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, a news release announced Thursday.
The tournament was scheduled to take place from April 5 through 12.
NBA suspends season
The NBA announced its suspending game play until further notice after a Utah Jazz player tested positive for COVID-19 Wednesday evening.
The test results were revealed before tip-off of tonight's game between the Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Arena.
According to The Athletic's Shams Charania, the player that tested positive was Jazz center Rudy Gobert.
The NBA says it will use this "hiatus to determine next steps for moving forward in regard to the coronavirus pandemic."
The NBA's decision was announced while the Mavericks hosted the Denver Nuggets.
The Mavs last played the Utah Jazz on Feb. 10. The team is scheduled to face the Jazz again on March 26.
Texas Rangers
The Texas Rangers were scheduled to start their 2020 season in Washington in a few weeks against the Seattle Mariners.
They'll still play the Mariners. But it won't be in Washington.
Gov. Jay Inslee made an announcement on Wednesday, banning all gatherings of more than 250 people in the Washington counties of King, Pierce and Snohomish due to the coronavirus pandemic.
As a result, the season opener between the Rangers and Mariners will have to be moved.
The Rangers issued a statement Wednesday afternoon, saying they will work with the Mariners and Major League Baseball to find an alternate plan. The games were original scheduled for March 26-29 at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, which is part of King County.
"While we hope to be back to playing baseball in Seattle as soon as possible, the health and safety of our community is the most important consideration," a statement from the Mariners reads.
The Rangers say they will provide updates on the scheduling of these games as they become available.
At this time, there is no known impact on the opening of the Rangers new ballpark Globe Life Field, scheduled for March 31 against the Los Angeles Angels.
FC Dallas
The match scheduled to take place in Seattle between FC Dallas and the Seattle Sounders FC has been postponed following the ban announced by Inslee, team officials said Wednesday.
The match was set to take place March 21.
"We know developments surrounding COVID-19 are evolving and understand the need to be flexible. As an organization, we are taking our own proactive measures with our fans, players and staff to ensure their health and safety," the team said in a released statement.
No details about the rescheduling of the match were announced.
High school basketball
Seven Dallas-Fort Worth area teams will be in San Antonio over the weekend for state basketball tournaments.
UIL said Thursday that the tournaments will still take place, but with a limited number of fans in attendance.
"The health and safety of our student-athletes and patrons is our number one priority,” said UIL Executive Director Dr. Charles Breithaupt. "While we are saddened to limit the fans that can be inside the arena supporting their teams, it is crucial we take every possible precaution to keep participants safe."
The following changes have been made by The UIL:
Thursday, March 12:
Normal schedule and entry for pre-purchased ticket holders with no additional tickets sold except for a limited number of championship game tickets for the winning teams on-site at the box office immediately following the semifinal games. Championship game tickets will be limited to 500 per school.
Friday, March 13:
Normal schedule and entry for pre-purchased ticket holders with no additional tickets sold except for a limited number of championship game tickets for the winning teams on-site at the box office immediately following the semifinal games. Championship game tickets will be limited to 500 per school.
Saturday, March 14:
Each school will be allotted 500 tickets to be sold following semifinal games and until the limit is reached. All-Tournament tickets will no longer be accepted on Saturday. Previously scheduled honor team presentations will no longer take place.
NCAA March Madness
As of Wednesday evening, the AAC Conference Championship was still set to take place at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth.
The president of the NCAA announced on March 11 that The NCAA men's and women's basketball tournaments would be played without fans present.
AAC Basketball Championship
The American Athletic Conference Commissioner says that the 2020 Air Force Reserve Men's Basketball Championship scheduled for Thursday, Mar. 12 at Dickies Arena will limit attendance to student-athletes, coaches, event and conference staff, ESPN personnel, credentialed media and immediate family members of the 12 participating teams.
More from WFAA:
- Coronavirus live updates: WHO classifies coronavirus as a pandemic
- Alvarado ISD to reopen Thursday after officials determine schools not at risk from community member under quarantine for COVID-19
- Man with 'presumptive positive' case of COVID-19 in Tarrant County identified as Episcopal rector in Fort Worth
- World Health Organization declares COVID-19 outbreak is now a pandemic
- EPA issues list of disinfectants to use against coronavirus