With activities slowly returning back to normal in the world of sports,UEFA has announced that this season’s Champions League which was suspended in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, will resume on August 7th.
This was confirmed by theUEFA deputy general secretary Giorgio Marchetti made after an executive committee meeting held by video conference.
The quarter-finals and semi-finals will be played over one leg, instead of the usual two, with the final to be held on Aug. 23.
The plan allows for quicker completion of the season than the traditional two-legged home and away format but does mean the competition will have six fewer games which will cost UEFA broadcast revenue.
The Europa League will follow a similar pattern, with the final rounds to be played in western Germany, with Inter v Getafe and Sevilla v Roma, both of which had their first-leg postponed due to the outbreak of COVID19, moving to neutral venues and becoming single-leg ties. Again, it is yet to be decided whether the remaining second legs will be played at home or neutral venues.
According to Giorgio Marchetti, “The quarters, the semi-final and the final will be played at four German venues in the same reason: Cologne, Duisburg, Dusseldorf, and Gelsenkirchen between the 10th and 24th of August.
“The round of 16 matches will be played on the 5th and 6th of August. Then we have the special cases of Inter vs Getafe and Sevilla vs Roma”, Marchetti concluded.
Source: Sky Sports
