Tournament is due to be hosted across 12 different countries, with both semi-finals and the final at Wembley; host cities have until April 5 to confirm number of fans allowed; England boss Gareth Southgate says country is “well placed” to host
Boris Johnson has confirmed the UK has offered to host extra Euro 2020 games this summer – and says talks between ministers and UEFA continue as organisers try to find a solution due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The tournament is due to be hosted across 12 different countries, with both semi-finals and the final at Wembley.
Speaking to The Sun, Boris Johnson says Britain is ready to take on extra games – and cites the rollout of the vaccines as a big reason behind his confidence.
For the time being, UEFA remains intent on hosting the tournament in the 12 cities originally named, which include Amsterdam, Baku, Dublin and Rome.
Each host city has until April 5 to confirm the number of fans allowed in each stadium, before a final decision is made by the UEFA executive committee.
England manager Gareth Southgate believes the country would be “well placed” to host this summer’s tournament.
Asked what effect that hosting this summer’s European Championship would have, Southgate told talkSPORT: “Obviously we have our group matches at Wembley anyway so we’re hugely looking forward to that.
“We’ve got our fingers crossed that we keep progressing as we are and there could be some fans back in the stadium. That would be the first step.
“Then everything else is a bit up in the air, really. Of course at the moment we’re being told the tournament will stay in its current format.
“You would imagine if there’s an option for one country to host, we’ll be well placed with a couple of other countries to be able to do that.
“But as a team we’ve got to remember that just hosting is not a great guarantee of success. There’s only France, really, that have done that in European Championships, hosted and won.
“You don’t win just because you’re the host. We won’t win just because our group matches are at Wembley. We’ve got to play well and we’ve got to be as prepared as we possibly can be.”
Who has made it to Euro 2020 and how will the tournament work?
Coronavirus has put Euro 2020 back a year to 2021, but 24 sides will still play across 12 host cities in a festival of football.
The top two teams from each of the 10 groups qualified for Euro 2020 and the four remaining positions were settled in the play-offs, with Scotland beating Serbia in a penalty shootout to join England and Wales at the tournament.
Source: Sky Sports