Women’s event moved to 2022 to avoid Olympics clash
The Women’s European Championships in 2021 have been postponed by a year, avoiding a direct clash with the rescheduled Tokyo Olympics.
Uefa’s executive committee agreed that the 16-nation tournament in England will now be played from 6-13 July in 2022.
The switch was inevitable after the IOC decided last month to put the 2020 Tokyo Olympics back by a year due to the coronavirus pandemic. The women’s football tournament at the Olympics will begin on 23 July next year.
Three European teams – the Netherlands, Sweden and Great Britain – are in the 16-nation lineup in Japan.
Uefa head of women’s football Nadine Kessler said: “With the Olympics now being confirmed for summer 2021, we firmly believe that moving to 2022 is in the best interests of the tournament.”
The move also avoids both of Uefa’s marquee national team championships competing for attention in the same summer with both finals at Wembley Stadium in London.
The men’s Euro 2020, including seven games at Wembley, was also postponed for a year by Uefa last month.
Wembley will stage the men’s final on 11 July 2021 and the women’s final on 31 July 2022.
Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin said: “We are ensuring that our flagship women’s competition will be the only major football tournament of the summer, providing it with the spotlight it deserves.”
The delay to the women’s Euros means England coach Phil Neville, pictured, will leave his post before they take place with his contract running out next summer. The former Manchester United and Everton defender last year led England to fourth place at the World Cup.
Brother Gary all but confirmed that Neville will leave, telling Sky Sports : “He’s got 14 months left on his contract and obviously the Olympics and the European Championships were within that period.
“Those tournaments have been taken out of the period and international manager’s contracts run to tournament ends. “If the tournaments have gone, then you’ve got a real problem obviously in the sense that you’re just coaching friendlies. I think that’s the situation that’s developed.”