Hub cities likely for European club ties
in England before their opening Nations League game. ‘On the international side we are still looking for dispensation on players coming back so if they are in non-green areas they don’t have to quarantine for two weeks. We are in the middle of that with the Medical Expert Group. ‘We are reasonably confident we can get that through for all the players we need to.’ Any September game in Dublin won’t deliver much-needed cash for the FAI but at least Three agreed to stay on board as team sponsors for the rest of the year. Owens had targeted an 18,000 crowd in Aviva Stadium but the government’s roadmap restrictions have made that ‘a big challenge’, he acknowledged.
Regarding clubs, it is likely hub cities in neutral countries will stage games involving Dundalk, Shamrock Rovers, Bohemians and Derry City, who will know their Euro qualifying fate shortly, Dundalk on Sunday, the others on Monday. ‘UEFA have done that with this season’s Champions League and Europa League. They may well do that again because it’s much easier to manage. I think that will come out tomorrow’ said Owens, who revealed that Aviva Stadium is available for Dundalk and Bohemians, if required. Owens has warned the FAI will punish any club in breach of the association’s Covid-19 protocols. ‘We will need to come down hard on the clubs that are not following protocols because there is too much at risk,’ he said. Asked if points deductions or walkovers were a possibility for clubs found guilty, Owens said: ‘We’ll definitely have to think about sanctions for the people who are not following the protocols. There is no point putting them in if there are no sanctions for ignoring them. We have the compliance officers and they go to all the matches.’