Juventus' Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo (right) celebrates after scoring during the Italian Serie A football match between Juventus and Sampdoria played behind closed doors at the Allianz Stadium in Turin on July 26, 2020. (MARCO BERTORELLO / AFP)

The next Serie A season will start on Sept 19, one week later than originally planned, the Italian league said in a statement on Monday.

The 2019-2020 season ended on Sunday, having been interrupted for 3 months between March & June by of the pandemic

The league said the decision “confirms the preference already expressed ... by the majority of the clubs in a meeting dedicated to this topic.”

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The 2019-2020 season ended on Sunday with Juventus lifting the trophy, having been interrupted for three months between March and June by of the coronavirus pandemic.

There will also be a shorter Christmas break than usual and matches will be played on both Jan 3 and Jan 6.