The highly anticipated UEFA European Championship, widely known as Euro 2020 football, has been officially postponed to the summer of 2021. This decision, made by UEFA in response to the escalating coronavirus pandemic, aims to provide an opportunity for European domestic club competitions to conclude their seasons by June 30th, if feasible. The unprecedented disruption caused by the global health crisis has forced football authorities to take decisive action, prioritizing public health and the integrity of the sport.
This postponement of Euro 2020, now rescheduled to tentatively take place from Friday, June 11th to Sunday, July 11th, 2021, was a key announcement among a series of measures revealed during a crucial period for football. The potential rescheduling of the Women’s Euro to 2022, initially planned for the following summer, was also under consideration. UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin described the current situation as “the biggest crisis that football faced in its history,” highlighting the gravity of the challenges.
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During the teleconference convened by UEFA, involving representatives from all 55 European national football associations, the European Club Association, European Leagues, and FIFPro, the international players’ union, provisional dates for the completion of the 2019-20 club season were discussed. Optimistic schedules proposed the Champions League final for June 27th and the Europa League final for June 24th. Traditional calendar norms, such as Champions League matches being exclusively midweek fixtures, are likely to be adjusted to accommodate the backlog of games as soon as governmental health and travel regulations permit resumption of play.
UEFA has established two dedicated working groups to manage the complex ramifications of the ongoing crisis. One group is tasked with developing a cohesive strategy for the resumption and conclusion of the club season. The second group will focus on evaluating the broad economic, financial, and regulatory repercussions of the Covid-19 outbreak, and propose mitigation strategies to alleviate the pandemic’s impact on football.
The Copa América 2020, originally scheduled to coincide with Euro 2020 football from June 11th to July 11th, has also been postponed by the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL). Additionally, the African Nations Championship, planned for April in Cameroon and featuring players solely from domestic leagues, has been indefinitely postponed.
In their public statements, both Ceferin and FIFA President Gianni Infantino emphasized that public health remains the utmost priority across Europe and the world. Infantino announced that FIFA would convene a conference call of its council bureau on Wednesday, proposing a $10 million donation to the World Health Organization’s Covid-19 solidarity response fund. Furthermore, FIFA plans to establish a global football assistance fund to support members of the football community significantly affected by the ongoing crisis.
In an interview with the Associated Press, Ceferin elaborated on the decision, stating, “We all know that this terrible virus that is all across Europe made football, and all life in Europe, quite impossible. We knew we have to stop the competitions. We think that postponing the Euros is the only chance to get a chance [for] the national leagues and all the club competitions to finish their competitions. That is not sure for now. But we should now think about … health, the [families] of the players, and the players. And of course, we have to think about football as a whole, the whole ecosystem of football. That’s why we have decided today that we postponed the Euro and we have 100% full support of all 55 national associations, European Leagues, European Club Association and Fifpro.”
Ceferin acknowledged the substantial financial implications of postponing Euro 2020 football, estimating losses in the “hundreds of millions of Euros.” In 2018, UEFA had projected revenues exceeding €1 billion from the 2020-24 cycle, allocating €371 million for tournament prize money and €775 million for national associations’ football development programs. UEFA officials have emphasized the critical reliance of up to 40 nations, whose domestic football economies are significantly smaller than those of major European leagues, on these UEFA funds.
Despite the postponement, Ceferin confirmed the intention to maintain the unique format of Euro 2020 football, with matches hosted across 12 different cities in 12 countries, including Dublin, Glasgow, and London, where the final was scheduled to be held at Wembley Stadium. “The plan is to have the same venues, the same cities, the same stadiums,” Ceferin affirmed. “But if anything gets complicated, then we can as well do it with 11, then nine or less stadiums. But the plan is that everything stays the same.”
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The Women’s European Championship, originally scheduled in England from July 7th to August 1st of the following year, is also “most likely” to be postponed to the summer of 2022. This adjustment is considered more practical due to the FIFA World Cup in Qatar scheduled to commence in November 2022.
“We are thinking of postponing this women’s Euro as well and the under-21 championship as well,” Ceferin added. “We will have to postpone both because I don’t think that we should cannibalise the women’s Euro, with the men’s Euro just one month before.”
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Mark Bullingham, the FA’s chief executive, voiced his organization’s full support for UEFA’s decision after the conference, stating, “People’s health and wellbeing has to be the primary concern for us all, so we fully support Uefa’s decision to postpone Euro 2020. We will be considering the implications for all England teams and our organisation over the coming days, including any implications on the date of the 2021 women’s Euro which we are very proud to be hosting. We will continue to work in collaboration with the PL, EFL and our football partners on the scenarios that could follow Uefa’s decision today.”
The European Club Association (ECA) also confirmed their active participation in the working group, committing to “develop and shape the practicalities around managing the calendar to maximise the chances of concluding the remaining club games of the 2019-20 season and tackle the wider consequences of Covid-19 on the game”.
