After many talks and arguments about Euro 2020 going through, European football’s governing body finally decided that it would be best to postpone the entire event. The event will be moved by a year and will be held in 2021. Just like with other sports events like US Open where fans couldn’t wait to start US Open betting on their favorite players, football fans were disappointed to find out they had to wait as well. Still, Euro 2020 marks the biggest sporting event that has been moved due to the COVID-19 pandemic that is wreaking havoc across the world.
The Coronavirus outbreak has previously caused many sports events to be moved indefinitely or canceled completely. Most of the major European leagues are currently at a stop and decisions have not been made yet about their conclusion.
Champions League and the Europa League are additional events that are waiting for the situation to unravel as they are currently at the elimination stage of the competition.
Euro 2020 Celebration of Football
The Euro 2020 competition was supposed to be the largest Euro Cup football competition to date. The completion is going to be the first one to be held not just in one country but in 12 different cities across Europe. The opening game was supposed to start in Rome, with the semi-finals and finals being held at the legendary Wembley Stadium in England.
More so, the competition is also going to be the largest one in terms of participants. Euro 2020 is going to include 24 nations for the first time. The idea of the format is to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the European Championships.
UEFA’s Final Decision
The governing body of European football finally decided to move the tournament from the previously arranged date of 12 June – 12 July 2020 to 11 June – 11 July 2021. The decision was made due to unsafe circumstances in regards to the Coronavirus outbreak that is currently rampaging across Europe but also due to most leagues still not being concluded.
The idea is to give an opportunity for all the unfinished leagues to conclude as well as the Champions League and Europa League, giving significant time for players and football federations to prepare for the tournament next year.
Additionally, a decision will have to be made about several play-off matches as well. Since the number of qualified participants is not final, the dates for these matches will be determined by the end of the year.
This will also mean moving other football events that are supposed to happen soon as well. Events like the women’s European competition and the upcoming World Cup are events which will additionally have to be revised.
What Does this mean for Football?
The decision to move such a massive competition like Euro 2020 is a devastating blow for football. Not only will it have repercussions on football itself but will create financial problems for all parties involved.
Teams that qualified and that are expected to qualify are facing an unreliable situation. But organizers will face a crisis never seen before.
Yet, the situation is not better in all spheres of life and football is just another victim of the COVID-19 situation. The sooner we get through it the faster we will get back to enjoying football and our normal way of life.