PARIS, March 14 ― Two players at second-division club Troyes became the first French footballers to test positive for the new coronavirus yesterday.

"One player from the senior team and one from the academy have contracted the coronavirus ― COVID-19,” the club announced on Twitter.

"The two players were immediately placed in isolation in their homes. The whole club remains under medical supervision,” Troyes added on their website.

The announcement came just a few hours after the French league suspended all Ligue 1 and second-tier games "until further notice”.

Elsewhere in football, seven players in Italy's Serie A have tested positive for the disease, as have Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta and Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi. ― AFP