FA And UEFA Say England 'Will Not' Host The Whole Euros
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Euro 2021 will not be solely hosted in the UK and Ireland, with the FA and UEFA ruling out the possibility of every game being in England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.
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Boris Johnson got football fans excited earlier this week when he said that the country was ready to host more games this summer.
With Wembley already hosting all of England's group games, including against Scotland, a last 16 game, both semi-finals and the final, many thought that the whole tournament could be held in England, with matches also spread to Scotland and Ireland, where matches are already taking place, and potentially Wales.
However that is not the case and UEFA are still committed to playing this summer's tournament, delayed from last year, across 12 European cities.
"Uefa is committed to holding Euro 2020 across 12 European cities, according to the schedule agreed last summer," a spokesperson for the European football governing body told the Times.
"There are no other plans being pursued."
Armand Duka, UEFA's Albania executive had told an Italian radio show, "It's possible that Euro 2020 will be played solely in England," but instead it looks like it will just be more matches, if any of the 12 cities currently picked cannot host matches because of the pandemic.
A senior FA source told the newspaper that it would be "logistically very difficult" to change the plans and host every game, so close to the tournament.
Though England undoubtedly has enough stadia to host all the matches, the problem would come in finding all the training facilities and accomodation for all the teams, officials and press.
That whole process would be tough in the best of times but during the pandemic, and the different circumstances in each country, that would likely be even harder.
According to the report, another issue is that many Premier League clubs are hoping to relay their pitches this summer, as the quick turnaround in seasons last year didn't allow them to.
Johnson did also say that England are ready to join the rest of the UK and Ireland in bidding to host for the World Cup in 2030, so it might not be too long until there is a whole tournament on these shores.
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