PARIS (France): The 2019-2020 Champions League, suspended since March because of the coronavirus pandemic, will be completed in Lisbon in August, UEFA said on Wednesday.
A “Final Eight” competition of one-off matches will begin in the Portuguese capital on August 12, with the final on August 23, European football’s governing body said.
Similarly, the Europa League will be completed with a “Final Eight” across four German cities including Cologne, with the final on August 21. The closing stages of the women’s Champions League will go ahead in Bilbao and San Sebastian at the end of that month.
The men’s Champions League final was initially due to be played in Istanbul at the end of May before the Covid-19 crisis took hold. The Turkish city will now host the 2021 final instead.
The quarterfinals and semi-finals are usually held over two legs, home and away, but will now be played as single ties, with games in the last eight on August 12 to 15 and the semi-finals on August 18 and 19.
The 65,000-capacity Estadio da Luz hosted the final of Euro 2004 and the Champions League in 2014, while Sporting’s 50,000-seater stadium was also used at Euro 2004 and for the UEFA Cup final in 2005.
Portugal’s credentials to host a Champions League mini-tournament were boosted by the fact that it has not been as badly hit by the pandemic as other western European countries, and it has no clubs left in the competition.
