UEFA Sets June Deadline for European Football Restart

Professional football games have been suspended indefinitely throughout Europe’s top leagues since March, as concerns grew over the possibility that fans and players alike could contract COVID-19.

Many notable names in the sport, such as Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta and Chelsea forward Callum Hudson-Odoi had contracted the virus over the past six weeks, but have now fully recovered.

Following today’s conference, UEFA has now re-affirmed its commitment to aim for a June restart, but the future of the Champions League and Europa League have yet to be ironed out.

The federation has also admitted that in some leagues, a June restart may not be possible, for both financial and logistical reasons.

If leagues cannot successfully be consumed; then other solutions that have been proposed by UEFA thus far, include rendering the season “null and void” and hence beginning afresh once the threat of the Coronavirus has diminished, or ending play now, with teams occupying the positions in the table that they held at the time Europe’s professional leagues were called off.

Potential solutions that have been touted for the Champions League and Europe League, include a so-called “round-robin” playoff tournament, where whoever wins a one-off tie over the course of one week’s play, progresses to the next round, and ultimately the final of the competition.

Each scenario could potentially be problematic for clubs throughout the continent, and UEFA's executive committee will meet again on Thursday the 23rd of April, in a bid to draft a solution that placates the majority of its member states.