UEFA thanks Hungary for its offer!

UEFA has informed the leaderships of the four national associations of the new rules for the organisation of qualification-stage matches of club tournaments in season 2020/21. Fixtures may also be held at neutral venues if the coronavirus regulations of the two countries do not allow for the home club concerned to play the match.

To this end, UEFA thanked Hungary and three other European countries, Cyprus, Greece and Poland, in a official statement for making stadia available to UEFA and the clubs concerned to host Champions League and Europa League fixtures at neutral venues if required.

European football's governing body also discussed the challenges of the forthcoming national-team matches this September. Close cooperation between UEFA and the national teams involved is necessary for these matches to be played at the originally-planned venues, but currently the possibility of national team matches being played on a neutral pitch cannot be discounted.

UEFA and its 55 member associations are also making every effort to ensure that matches are played in the presence of supporters, but the severity of the pandemic's effect in Europe varies from country to country. UEFA is constantly monitoring the pandemic situation and is expected to assess it again in mid-August. At that point, it will also be decided whether the current policy to play matches behind closed doors can be amended, at least in part.

There was also talk of postponing the majority of youth tournaments until the spring of 2021, but no final decision has yet been made on this issue.