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UEFA indefinitely suspended the Champions League, Europa League and Euro 2020 qualifying playoffs on Wednesday as the coronavirus pandemic continues.
After a meeting two weeks ago, UEFA and its 55 member associations had still hoped to complete all games by June 30, when player contracts expire.
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The Euro 2020 qualifying playoffs and international friendlies planned for June have been postponed, freeing up additional space for domestic and European football to resume if possible — likely behind closed doors.
FIFA has already put plans in place for player contracts to be extended until the last day of the season, whenever that might be.
UEFA has also postponed until further notice deadlines in relation to the admission process for all 2020-21 club competitions.
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin warned this past weekend that this season could be “lost” if competitive action does not resume by the end of June. The coronavirus crisis has led every nation in Europe except Belarus to pause its football leagues.
European football’s governing body previously postponed this summer’s European Championship for 12 months during a video conference on March 17 and later indefinitely postponed the Champions League and Europa League finals, which were due to take place in Istanbul and Gdansk, Poland, respectively.
The Champions League and Europa League are suspended at the round-of 16 stage with Atletico Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, RB Leipzig and Atalanta the four sides to have qualified for the quarterfinals.
Four round-of-16 second-leg ties have yet to be played: Manchester City vs. Real Madrid, Juventus vs. Lyon, Barcelona vs. Napoli and Bayern Munich vs. Chelsea.