The longest season

BAYERN MUNICH brought the curtain down on the protracted 2019-20 season with a 1-0 win over Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final in Lisbon.

Former PSG forward Kingsley Coman scored the winner with a header just before the hour-mark in a match which never lacked in quality but which never fully came alight either.

The Parisiens had the best of the early chances - decent efforts by Kylian Mbappe were blocked by Leon Goretzka and Joshua Kimmich before Neymar was foiled by a sprawling Manuel Neuer.

However, Bayern Munich - who dominated possession throughout - took over proceedings towards the end of the first half with Robert Lewandowski having hit the post.

Nonetheless, Mbappe had a glorious chance on the stroke of half time following a mesmerising exchange of passes in the box with Angel Di Maria, only for him to shoot tamely straight at Neuer. 

But, in the second half, the German side reasserted their dominance - and, on 59 minutes, they took the lead when Coman, little more than six yards out, converted Kimmich's neatly flighted cross. 

Barely a minute later, Lewandowski could have put the result beyond doubt but he was denied by a brilliant last-second interception by Presnel Kimpembe. 

For the last half hour, though, the match became increasingly disrupted by a series of fouls as both sides had valid claims for a penalty. 

PSG - despite their ownership by the Qatari royal family and a team costing £540m in transfer fees - badly ran out of steam, with Neymar particularly frustrating to watch as the clock wound down. 

As a result, Bayern Munich held out with relative ease for a sixth European Cup after previous wins in the competition in 1974, 1975, 1976, 2001 and 2013.

So ended the longest season in football history - one which in Britain especially has been pockmarked throughout the divisions by a series of asterisks. 

Even without taking into account the devastating effects of the coronavirus on teams in the lower reaches, this had been a tough campaign for many of those sides.

Bury became the first club since Maidstone United in August 1992 to be expelled from the Football League - while Wigan Athletic, Bolton Wanderers, and Macclesfield Town - also all from the North West of England - suffered severe financial difficulties in 2019-20.

All of them received points deductions during the course of the season and all of them were eventually relegated, with Macclesfield losing their Football League status.

Elsewhere, further down the pyramid in England, all promotion and relegation below National League level was cancelled, meaning a lot of effort by many teams simply went to waste. 

The Scottish League playoffs and the Welsh Cup Final were also ditched - although the Scottish Football Association still harbour hopes of hosting its FA Cup Final at Hampden Park on 20 December. 

Now, at least, the coronavirus restrictions have been eased somewhat - and clubs in England below the National League divisions can admit supporters while following strict social distancing measures.

Of course, there is a valid argument to suggest that - with the bars and beaches so busy in any case - the guidelines could also quite safely be applied by most, if not all, of the National League clubs, as well as those in the lower Scottish divisions and Welsh leagues. 

But, for now, the only matches in the United Kingdom which fans can attend are those in the seventh tier and below in England. 

Importantly, though, it is exactly these community-based clubs who are most in need of the financial support right now. 

So, while the 2019-20 season may have felt like it lasted forever, perhaps it is already worth seeking out a non-league match with which to kick-start the 2020-21 campaign.

ROLL OF HONOUR 2019-20

ENGLAND

Premier League

Champions	Liverpool
Runners-up	Manchester City
Champions League	Manchester United (third place), Chelsea (fourth place)
Europa League	Arsenal (FA Cup winners), Leicester City (fifth place), Tottenham Hotspur (sixth place)
Relegation	AFC Bournemouth, Watford, Norwich City

Championship

Champions	Leeds United
Runners-up	West Bromwich Albion
Playoff winners	Fulham (won 2-1 aet v Brentford)
Relegation	Charlton Athletic, Wigan Athletic*, Hull City

* Wigan Athletic were deducted 12 points for entering administration.

League One
On 9 June, a majority of clubs voted to curtail the season due to coronavirus. The final table was calculated on a points-per-game method with play-off matches played behind closed doors.

Champions	Coventry City
Runners-up	Rotherham United
Playoff winners	Wycombe Wanderers (won 2-1 v Oxford United)
Relegation	Tranmere Rovers, Southend United, Bolton Wanderers*
Expelled	Bury**

* Bolton Wanderers were deducted 12 points for entering administration.
** Bury were expelled from the EFL on 27 August 2019. At the time of their expulsion, they had played no matches.

League Two
On 15 May, a majority of clubs voted to curtail the season due to coronavirus. The final table was calculated on a points-per-game method with play-off matches played behind closed doors.

Champions	Swindon Town
Runners-up	Crewe Alexandra
Also promoted	Plymouth Argyle
Playoff winners	Northampton Town (won 4-0 v Exeter City)
Relegation	Macclesfield Town*

* Macclesfield Town were deducted four points on 19 December and seven points on 7 May for failing both to pay their players' wages and to fulfil their fixtures. On 11 August, a further six-point deduction was given for breaches of regulations over non-payment of wages, making a total of 17 points deducted.

National League Premier
On 22 April, clubs voted to curtail the season due to coronavirus. On 17 June, the final table was calculated on a points-per-game method with play-off matches played behind closed doors.

Champions	Barrow
Playoff winners	Harrogate Town (won 3-1 v Notts County)
Relegation	Ebbsfleet United, AFC Fylde, Chorley

National League North
On 22 April, clubs voted to curtail the season due to coronavirus. On 17 June, the final table was calculated on a points-per-game method with play-offs matches played behind closed doors.

Champions	King's Lynn Town
Playoff winners	Altrincham (won 1-0 v Boston United)
Relegation	None

National League South
On 22 April, clubs voted to curtail the season due to coronavirus. On 17 June, the final table was calculated on a points-per-game method with play-offs matches played behind closed doors.

Champions	Wealdstone
Playoff winners	Weymouth (won 3-0 on pens v Dartford, after 0-0 draw)
Relegation	None

Domestic Cup Finals

FA Cup Final	Arsenal 2-1 Chelsea
League Cup Final	Manchester City 2-1 Aston Villa.
FA Community Shield	Manchester City 1-1 Liverpool. Manchester City won 5-4 on penalties.
EFL Trophy	Portsmouth v Salford City: not yet played due to coronavirus
FA Trophy	Not yet played due to coronavirus
FA Vase	Not yet played due to coronavirus

SCOTLAND

Premiership
On 13 March, the Scottish season was suspended indefinitely due to coronavirus. On 18 May, the final table was calculated on a points-per-game method with all play-offs matches cancelled.

Champions	Celtic
Runners-up	Rangers
Europa League	Rangers (runners-up), Motherwell (third place), Aberdeen (fourth place)
Relegation	Heart of Midlothian

Championship
On 13 March, the Scottish season was suspended indefinitely due to coronavirus. On 15 April, the final table was calculated on a points-per-game method with all play-offs matches cancelled.

Champions	Dundee United
Runners-up	Inverness Caledonian Thistle (not promoted)
Relegation	Partick Thistle

League One
On 13 March, the Scottish season was suspended indefinitely due to coronavirus. On 15 April, the final table was calculated on a points-per-game method with all play-offs matches cancelled.

Champions	Raith Rovers
Runners-up	Falkirk (not promoted)
Relegation	Stranraer

League Two
On 13 March, the Scottish season was suspended indefinitely due to coronavirus. On 15 April, the final table was calculated on a points-per-game method with all play-offs matches cancelled.

Champions	Cove Rangers
Runners-up	Edinburgh City (not promoted)
Relegation	None

Domestic Cup Finals

FA Cup Final	To be played on 20 December
League Cup Final	Celtic 1-0 Rangers
Challenge Cup Final	Inverness Caledonian Thistle v Raith Rovers: not yet played due to coronavirus

WALES

Welsh Premier League
On 13 March, the season was suspended indefinitely due to coronavirus. On 19 May, the final table was calculated on a points-per-game method.

Champions	Connah's Quay Nomads
Europa Lg	The New Saints (runners-up), Bala Town (third place), Barry Town United (fourth place)
Relegation	Carmarthen Town, Airbus UK Broughton

Welsh Cup Finals

FA Cup Final	Cancelled due to coronavirus
League Cup Final	Connah's Quay Nomads 3-0 STM Sports

NORTHERN IRELAND

Irish Premiership
On 13 March, the season was suspended indefinitely due to coronavirus. On 23 June, the final table was calculated on a points-per-game method.

Champions	Linfield
Europa Lg	Coleraine (runners-up), Glentoran (cup winners)
Relegation	Institute

Irish Cup Finals

IFA Cup Final	Glentoran 2-1 Ballymena United
League Cup Final	Coleraine 2-1 Crusaders

EUROPE

UEFA Finals

Champions League	Bayern Munich (Ger) 1-0 Paris Saint-Germain (Fra)
Europa League	Sevilla (Spa) 3-2 Inter Milan (Ita)
Super Cup	Liverpool (Eng) 2-2 Chelsea (Eng), after extra time. Liverpool won 5-4 on penalties.

Major European league champions

Spain	Real Madrid
Italy	Juventus
Germany	Bayern Munich
France	Paris Saint-Germain*
Portugal	FC Porto
Netherlands	None**
Belgium	Club Brugge
Greece	Olympiacos
Turkey	İstanbul Başakşehir

* Paris Saint-Germain were declared champions on 30 April following the indefinite suspension of Ligue 1 on 13 March due to coronavirus.
** No title was awarded due to coronavirus.