UEFA says let's 'not talk about dark scenarios' about Euro 2020 and coronavirus

Harold Cunningham/Getty Images for UEFA

Aleksander Ceferin, the President of European football's governing body UEFA, says he is confident that Euro 2020 will go ahead as planned this summer.

There have been ongoing concerns that the tournament, which is Europe’s flagship international competition, could be either cancelled or postponed due to the spread of novel coronavirus, which has infected more than 90,000 people across 73 countries and territories as of Monday evening.

“Let’s be optimistic and not talk about dark scenarios,” Ceferin said at a media conference in Amsterdam following the conclusion of UEFA’s 44th Congress Meeting.

“You don’t know how many concerns we have when we organize a big competition … we have security concerns, we have political instability concerns and one of those concerns is the virus. We are dealing with it and we are confident that we can deal with it.”

Ceferin added that UEFA is in constant close contact with the World Health Organization (WHO) and European governments on public health advice.

Speaking alongside Čeferin, UEFA General Secretary Theodore Theodoridis added that European football’s governing body “didn’t want to overreact” when it came to speculation about moving games during this summer’s Euros.

Theodoridis said that the immediate priority for UEFA was the Euro 2020 playoff semifinals and finals, which are due to be played on March 27 and 31.

UEFA also confirmed that it has set up a working group with the European Leagues association to handle any fixture congestion which may be caused by coronavirus postponements.

This is the first time in the tournament’s history that the European Championships will be held across the continent, with 12 cities hosting matches throughout the four weeks.