The Union of European Football Association (UEFA) has canceled its 2020/21 youth European competition amid COVID-19 turbulence which has shaken the world.
Initially, the organizers of the European youth competition made a unanimous decision to restructure the calendar of the 2020/21 season, but some strict measures imposed due to the pandemic made those decisions abortive.
“The committee had initially decided last year to amend the format of the competition and to delay its start, but the various measures imposed by health authorities around Europe have continued to evolve since then” UEFA articulated in a statement
“The travelling restrictions affecting participating clubs create major difficulties for organizing their matches and two clubs have already withdrawn from the competition.” It added
Therefore, the Executive Committee deems it fit not to give 2020/21 season a further postponement as it will be at the detriment to the health of the youth players, hence their safety must be highly prioritized
“The UEFA Executive Committee stressed that there is no possibility to further postpone the start of the competition and that the health and safety of youth players must be given highest possible priority.”
“Regrettably, the conditions to restart this international youth competition are not met in the current circumstances and both the UEFA Club Competitions Committee and the European Club Association were consulted and supported the idea to exceptionally cancel this season’s UEFA Youth League”.
The Committee hoped that major stakeholders of the youth league can reason with the difficult decision taken by the European body, as the competition is meant to develop the growth of the youth players.
‘While we know that many of you may be disappointed, we hope you can understand this difficult decision. We are fully aware of the importance of this competition for the development of your players and academies and the significance for the overall growth and development of the game.
‘We thank you very much for your efforts and collaboration in the past weeks and wish you all the best for your youth domestic championships. We look forward to seeing your club in the coming future at the UEFA Youth League” the statement ended
