(CNN) -
The SG Ripdorf / Molzen amateur soccer team in Germany certainly doesn't need to be reminded, as they suffered a crushing 37-0 defeat on Sunday after practicing social distancing in their game against local rival SV Holdenstedt. II.
Ripdorf, who play at the eleventh level of German football, sent only seven players out of fear that their opponent had covid-19.
Ripdorf co-chair Patrick Ristow told CNN that the Holdenstedt had come into contact with an infected player during their previous game, so Ripdorf felt conditions were unsafe due to the two-week incubation period.
The club tried to postpone the soccer game, Ristow said, but his opponents said there was no reason to do so as the team later tested negative for the virus.
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The club's coach, Florian Schierwater, told Altmark Zeitung that there was "no basis for canceling the match" because none of the players had come into contact with an infected person.
Seven Ripdorf players eventually volunteered to take part in the game, which meant they could go ahead and the club avoided a fine.
"In this pandemic, our club doesn't have a lot of money to pay for that, so our team said they would play but stay away from opponents," Ristow told CNN by email.
“For the full 90 minutes our players kept the perfect distance so that Holdenstedt had enough time to score goals.
We didn't talk about tactics because we all knew this game would be a huge loss.
Our opponent did not understand when we walked to the side of the court.
A goal almost every 2 minutes
“We also know that the score is really bad, but safety is more important than a game for us.
For all the players, this result is fine and [at the] end of the season, it is important to score points and not goals.
Holdenstedt's players showed little mercy throughout the football game, scoring a goal almost every two minutes.
The result went viral on social media and the club has received unexpected attention from global media.
"In the last few days we have received many calls from radio and television stations around the world, many opinions from people across the country and suggestions of what we could do," he said.
"If this situation [were to happen again], we hope we can find a way together with our opponent to postpone the game."
Germany