The league, which has 23 teams based in the United States and three in Canada, added, “At the appropriate time, the league and clubs will communicate plans for the continuation of the 2020 season and update the status of league events.”

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The league’s decision comes a day after the Seattle Sounders and San Jose Earthquakes postponed their respective home matches scheduled for March 21.

MLS’s decision to suspend the season follows similar action by the NBA and other sports organizations.

The action affects 12 games this weekend, including D.C. United’s visit to Cincinnati on Saturday. United also was scheduled to play at Philadelphia on March 22. The next home game — April 3 against New York City FC — is also affected.

If the 30-day pause holds, United would resume April 15 at home against Toronto FC.

United said in a statement, “The safety of our supporters, players and staff is our number one priority, and we feel that these measures are the appropriate response and course of action to support health authorities’ ongoing efforts to flatten the curve of covid-19 (coronavirus) spreading.”

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Coach Ben Olsen and the players, who were slated to fly to Ohio on Friday afternoon, were not made available to comment.

MLS has some flexibility at the end of the season. Both last year and this year, in an effort to streamline the season, the league ended the regular season in early October, about three weeks earlier than in recent years. It also arranged the championship game, MLS Cup, a few weeks earlier than usual.

The idea of playing behind closed doors was never seriously considered, many people close to the situation said, because teams would still have to travel and because of the complicated financial impact (ticket refunds, vendors and other infrastructure elements).

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The last time MLS faced such a disruption was after the 2001 terrorist attacks. The final few weeks of the regular season were canceled and play resumed with the playoffs.

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It remains unclear when teams will resume practicing. United probably will take the weekend off and reevaluate the situation before possibly regrouping Monday.

The organization is already taking precautions to mitigate the risk of illness. At Audi Field, players and front-office staff are using separate entrances, and no one will be allowed to circulate between the two areas, which are two floors apart.

Players arrived at the stadium Thursday for meetings and light workouts — the team does not do much two days before a match — before being excused.

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Overseas, Europa League matches Thursday in Seville and Milan were postponed but several others took place as scheduled. Manchester United’s Europa League match at LASK (Austria) was being played without spectators.

UEFA, soccer’s governing body in Europe, announced next week’s Champions League games in Manchester, England, and Turin, Italy, had been postponed.

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UEFA also arranged a teleconference next Tuesday for member associations to discuss “all domestic and European competitions,” including this summer’s European Championship, which is second in global popularity to the World Cup.

An Associated Press report said UEFA is preparing to postpone the tournament until 2021.

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FIFA, soccer’s global governing body, announced the first 10 South American qualifying matches for the 2022 World Cup, slated to take place late this month, were postponed.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Soccer Federation called off men’s and women’s national team matches in March and April. The men were to play at the Netherlands and Wales late this month, and the women were to host Australia and Brazil next month in Sandy, Utah, and San Jose, respectively.

USL Championship, the second-tier pro league below MLS, announced it suspended the season for a minimum of 30 days. At least two Loudoun United away matches are affected.

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Third-tier USL League One announced the suspension of preseason activities and a delay to the start of the regular season, which was to begin March 27.

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The National Women’s Soccer League is scheduled to begin the season April 18, including the Washington Spirit vs. OL Reign (Seattle-Tacoma) at Audi Field. The Spirit arrived in Port St. Lucie, Fla., on Thursday for two weeks of training camp.

The league announced Thursday that all preseason matches were canceled. The Spirit was to play three college teams at Maryland SoccerPlex on consecutive weekends leading to the opener.

“Our priority continues to be the safety and well-being of our players, coaches, staff and fans,” Commissioner Lisa Baird said. "We are reviewing all contingency plans related to our regular season schedule and are monitoring developing events and their potential impact. We are deeply appreciative of our fans and partners for their continued support of our league and all our world-class players.”