By Curtis Martin –

Like every aspect of life, the sports industry has been affected by the coronavirus with health concerns and state restrictions shutting teams and sports events down, including the Massachusetts Pirates.

The Massachusetts Pirates had been hoping to kickoff their 2020 season and third year of play in Worcester but late Friday afternoon the National Arena League announced that the season was canceled.

Pirates President/GM Jawad Yatim in a statement released on the teams website said, “It’s an unfortunate situation for all, a tough pill to swallow so to speak but it’s bigger than us at the moment and we had to move on and begin preparing for the 2021 season. In regards to Massachusetts, we’re willing to do whatever necessary to compete but ultimately it became too difficult as a whole to find a solution to make that happen. One thing I can confidently say is that we are excited for what the future holds and the growth we’ve been experiencing is encouraging and on par with what we had imagined coming into this project. We will keep attacking each and everyday as we have been, and Massachusetts will continue to have one heck of an arena football organization to call their own. Please continue to stay safe and healthy and don’t forget to stay alert for some exciting news and updates coming in the near future. Go Pirates!”

NAL Commissioner Chris Siegfried in a statement released on the NAL website said, “The owners tried everything they could to make this work.” He also said, “It’s difficult to produce a schedule, get players in town, promote the games and sell tickets when we still don’t have confirmed playing dates or definitive answers regarding our fans being allowed in the arenas.”

Fridays announcement from the NAL came on top of an announcement from the Bruins that a player tested positive for COVID-19. That player has since tested negative in two subsequent tests.