Top US Government adviser Dr Anthony Fauci has said the National Football League season may not start in September.

The NFL unveiled its schedule last week and it is due to begin on September 10 but Fauci says it all depends on testing and the issue of contact in the game.

He said in an interview with NBC: “The virus will make the decision for us. I think it’s feasible that negative testing players could play to an empty stadium.

“If the virus is so low that even in the general community the risk is low, I could see filling a third of the stadium or half the stadium so people could be six feet apart. It’s going to depend."

The doctor also said the league's return will depend on the capacity to test all the players on the 32 teams in the NFL.

He added: “Right now, it would be overwhelmingly piggish. But by the end of August, we should have in place antigen testing ... You could test millions of people.

“If you really want to be absolutely certain, you’d test all the players before the game... To be 100% sure, you’ve got to test every day. But that’s not practical and that’s never going to happen. 

“But you can diminish dramatically by testing everybody Saturday night, Sunday morning, and say ‘OK, only negative players play.’”

He also pointed out that the nature of the sport will make it more difficult to return.

“If people are in such close contact as football players are on every single play, then that’s the perfect set up for spreading. 

“I would think that if there is an infected football player on the field – a middle linebacker, a tackle, whoever it is it – as soon as they hit the next guy, the chances are that they will be shedding virus all over that person.”

The four NFL games planned to be played in London later this year have already been cancelled due to the pandemic.