Lisbon the favourite to host Champions League mini-tournament in August
Lisbon appears to be the favourite to host the final stages of the Champions League. The Portuguese capital is understood to be in contention to stage a condensed version of the tournament, with ties played as single legs as Uefa seeks a solution for completing the competition amid the coronavirus pandemic.
How the four outstanding last-16 matches should be completed remains open to discussion. Manchester City are due to play a second leg at home to Real Madrid, leading 2-1. Chelsea are 3-0 down from the home first leg against Bayern Munich, while Juventus are due to host Lyon, who won the first leg 1-0, and Barcelona to host Napoli at 1-1.
Those matches may be added to the fixture list for Lisbon, which seems set to take over from Istanbul as the venue for the final. Lisbon has two major stadiums in close proximity: Estádio da Luz and Estádio José Alvalade. It is understood other stadiums in the country, such as Porto’s, could also be used.
Istanbul may be compensated with a future Champions League final, if Uefa’s executive committee decides on Wednesday that Lisbon is the best option. The final could take place on Sunday 23 August, with games condensed into 10 days.
As things stand all the matches would be behind closed doors, but if the Portuguese government were to alter its guidance in time for ticketing to be organised there is the possibility of some supporters being able to attend.
A city in Germany – possibly Frankfurt or Düsseldorf – could host the final stages of the Europa League. The final was due in Gdansk.
The Women’s Champions League may follow a similar pattern, with reports in Spain suggesting the final games could be split between the Basque cities of Bilbao and San Sebastian.
Uefa is understood to be targeting a mid-October start for the group stage of the 2020-21 Champions League, traditionally when matchday three would be. How the qualifying rounds take place is a complex problem, with many leagues likely ongoing when the preliminaries are usually scheduled.