Premier League outfits such as Everton and Liverpool have been handed a major clue as to when they might be allowed to return to training and how many days it might take for the season to be concluded.
The English Football League has estimated it will need around 56 days in order to complete the current campaign and has also advised clubs the 2019-20 season will likely conclude behind closed doors.
A letter from the EFL was sent to its 71 clubs on Thursday with an update in response to the coronavirus crisis.
The governing body for the Championship, League One and League Two have now said training should not resume until May 16 at the earliest, if it is safe to do so.
They said: "Whenever the decision is taken that is safe to resume, we currently estimate that the League will require approximately 56 days to complete the outstanding matches in the season (including play-offs).
"We are committed to ensuring that clubs are provided an appropriate notice period to ensure you are able to prepare operationally given the scale and impact of the postponements in place.
"We are in a position whereby the 2019-20 campaign will be extended, but still remain hopeful of a conclusion in the summer months.
"The EFL Board is currently working on the basis that the end-of-season play-offs will take place across all three divisions as normal with two-legged semi-finals and a final, although no decision has been taken on the likely venue as it will depend on the circumstances at play at the time.
"It is our working assumption at this stage that matches will be played behind closed doors when we eventually return and as part of our contingency planning we are absolutely mindful of the need to try and mitigate the cost of this to clubs as best we can."
Source: m.allfootballapp.com