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Uefa Champions League, Europa on hold indefinitely
The prestigious Champions League trophy. Uefa’s most valuable club competition has been postponed indefinitely.
PARIS- The Champions League has been put on hold indefinitely, Uefa have confirmed after their coronavirus crisis meetings on Tuesday.
Reports suggested the date of the final had been put back to June 27 as Uefa try to ensure their showpiece club competition reaches a conclusion this summer.
The final is currently scheduled for May 30 in Turkish city Istanbul but the coronavirus outbreak has forced Uefa to suspend their main competitions.
The coronavirus crisis has decimated the global sporting calendar, including domestic, European and international action, and Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin held a series of calls on Tuesday to help chart a course for the future of football.
In a statement published by Uefa after the meetings, it was announced ‘all competitions and matches for clubs and national teams for both men and women have been put on hold until further notice’.
The statement added: “A working group has been set up with the participation of leagues and club representatives to examine calendar solutions that would allow for the completion of the current season and any other consequence of the decisions made today.”
However, Spanish newspaper Marca claimed that the Champions League final has been put back by four weeks and will now take place on June 27.
It comes after Euro 2020 was the first European competition to be put back with news emerging on Tuesday that the tournament will be held in the summer of 2021.
A pan-European tournament, with 12 host cities, was ambitious at the outset and in the current climate had appeared almost impossible to achieve. Getting rid of both international competitions means there should now be breathing space for other club tournaments to take place and finish.
Europa League postponed
Almost every domestic league in European has been suspended and Uefa are desperate for their competitions to be played out to a conclusion by the end of June.
Europa League final, due to be played in Gdansk, Poland, has also been placed on hold indefinitely. The format for remainder of this season’s Champions League and Europa League will be decided.
Proposals to switch all remaining ties from quarter-finals to a one-off match were discussed in the first conference call of the day involving the clubs and leagues chaired by Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin, as well as a plan to stage the semi-finals and final of both competitions in one city over the course of five days.
The Champions League and Europa League were officially suspended last week.
Leipzig, Atalanta, Atletico Madrid and PSG had all booked their place in the quarter-finals with the second legs of the matches between Manchester City and Real Madrid, Juventus and Lyon, Barcelona and Napoli and Bayern Munich and Chelsea scrapped.
The first legs of Europa League last-16 ties were also played but Manchester United, Wolves and Rangers are among the teams whose second legs are yet to be played.
