Euro 2020 soccer tournament postponed until 2021 due to coronavirus pandemic

The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) has postponed the Euro 2020 soccer tournament to June 2021 as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Norwegian Football Association. It comes after UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin had organized a video conference meeting for all 55 of the group's associations Tuesday morning. The powerbrokers of European soccer were tasked with finding a solution to one of the biggest challenges facing the sport in modern times. Soccer has virtually ground to a halt across the continent in recent days, with several top-flight domestic leagues having to suspend matches as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.

All Champions League and Europa League fixtures scheduled for this week had also been called off. As of Tuesday, more than 185,000 cases of the coronavirus had been reported worldwide, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University, with 7,330 deaths. Last week, the WHO recognized Europe as the epicenter of the outbreak, with many countries ushering in lockdown measures in an effort to contain the spread. Italy has recorded the most cases of COVID-19 in Europe, with nearly 28,000 confirmed infections and 2,158 deaths nationwide.