UEFA Euro 2020

[unification]

For those plotting summer city breaks next year, UEFA have a bit of a weird concept for the Euros in 2020 by holding it in a series of cities across the continent (including the maligned Baku). The ticket ballot opens on 12th June.

A festival of football! A celebration for players and fans alike - unless you consider the ticket prices. The cheapest ticket to any game is €30 for games in Baku, Budapest and Bucharest - all OK for a Category 3 ticket. Category 3 for other games is €50 or €75 for knockout games - getting steeper but still fair considering the magnitude of each match. However, for a Category 2 ticket at Wembley (excluding the semis and final), Dublin or Glasgow will cost you €125 (£111). For a 90 minute group stage match that could see you watching Serbia v Belarus, is that going to appeal to anyone? A Category 1 ticket for the final is €945.

Football should never stand still and should always evolve, but just who is this concept of a competition for anymore? It makes a buggery of trying to follow your side, with expensive means to get to each game and ticket prices that far exceed the cost of getting to each match. No doubt someone at UEFA is earning a shedload from this but at the certain cost to the average fan.

I do hope it is a one-off concept.

 

[Northstandboy]

This is a one off to celebrate the 60th Birthday.

 

[horseman]

But not a celebration for the Genuine fans at those prices

 

[unification]

This is a one off to celebrate the 60th Birthday.

I just have a feeling UEFA will seem it such a ‘success’ that they’ll roll it out for more tournaments.

I have no issue with the dual hosting of the Euros like Austria-Switzerland and Poland-Ukraine did but a potential 5200 mile trip from Dublin to Baku isn’t that.

 

[Sarge]

This is a one off to celebrate the 60th Birthday.

Best be some serious party with some of those later stages ticket prices

 

[Sarge]

I just have a feeling UEFA will seem it such a ‘success’ that they’ll roll it out for more tournaments.

I have no issue with the dual hosting of the Euros like Austria-Switzerland and Poland-Ukraine did but a potential 5200 mile trip from Dublin to Baku isn’t that.

Uefa got themselves their own Shaun Harvey ? He'd claim succes irrespective!
Agree re dual hosting

 

[tonyw]

They've already worked out some of the logistics of the draw.

England - assuming we don't a**e up qualifying, which would actually be quite tough to do from here - won't have to go to Baku unless we're one of the best 3rd place teams after the Euro 2020 group stages.

It'll be Wembley for the group stage (with just a chance we could have to go to Glasgow if the Sweaties somehow qualify).
Then if we win the group (and then keep winning) it's Dublin-Rome-Wembley-Wembley
Or if we're runners up, it's Copenhagen-St.Petersburg-Wembley-Wembley

[both of which would seem to me to offer a rather excellent two city summer vacation!]


However whichever poor sods end up Runners Up in Group A, will have a 'fun' combo of having to play in Rome & Baku in the Groups Stages, followed by Amsterdam, followed by heading back to Baku!

 

[tonyw]

So on the one hand - got to give England some credit; we haven't lost a qualifier for World Cup or Euros since 2009.

On the other - who exactly are we bribing to get these groups? Kosovo are second in the group at the moment, we've given them a goal head start and we're still four up by halftime. Looks like being four matches in a row to begin qualifying - one against each of our opponents - where we're going to win by four clear goals.

I know Euro qualifying is easier now the tournament is up to 24 teams, but it still seems that every other group is tougher than ours!

 

[Marked Ox]

So on the one hand - got to give England some credit; we haven't lost a qualifier for World Cup or Euros since 2009.

On the other - who exactly are we bribing to get these groups? Kosovo are second in the group at the moment, we've given them a goal head start and we're still four up by halftime. Looks like being four matches in a row to begin qualifying - one against each of our opponents - where we're going to win by four clear goals.

I know Euro qualifying is easier now the tournament is up to 24 teams, but it still seems that every other group is tougher than ours!

I wouldn't write off Kosovo just yet.

 

[ZeroTheHero]

Talk about game of two halves! If the half time whistle hadn't gone it looked like England were going to score every few minutes. Very different in the second half.

 

[Northstand grandad]

I hope Oxford players are watching how much passion the Kosovans have

 

[Sandy]

Is it me or is Henderson absolute shite?

 

[SteMerritt]

Is it me or is Henderson absolute shite?

Not sure, but it's definitely one of you...?

 

[Marked Ox]

Talk about game of two halves! If the half time whistle hadn't gone it looked like England were going to score every few minutes. Very different in the second half.

England at times contrived to miss when it was easier to score (I'm not including the penalty) in the 2nd half. Impressed with Kosovo's spirit and willingness to have a go which was in stark contrast to Bulgaria.

Also, Raheem Sterling was absolutely superb in that 1st half. The turn for Kane's goal was just sublime.

 

[Sarge]

made me smile ....

 

[unification]

Euro 2020: Glasgow and Dublin at risk of being cut from host cities

Glasgow and Dublin are at growing risk of being cut from the list of host cities for this summer's European Championship.

www.bbc.co.uk

So the ramifications of UEFA's pig-headedness at continuing with the multi-city pan-European tournament are looking like they will be felt fairly soon. Dublin and Glasgow could potentially lose their games.

I know no one has a crystal ball and will be able to tell you what the COVID situation will be like in the summer but surely an approach of 'err on the side of caution' is better than the 'it'll take place as planned with fans in attendance' which seems to have been UEFA's message throughout. The issue is that they're now leaving it very late to make any form of decision either way. Will it be a fanless tournament held in multiple cities essentially rendering the whole idea pointless anyway, a fan filled 12-city tournament/super spreader event, quarter full stadiums of locals only, thrown to a nation willing to deal with the logistics at late notice or be cancelled altogether?

With a tad more planning and some UEFA bonzo with a grain of commonsense, it could have been held in one country (England being an obvious candidate having the semi-finals and final package already) but that ship may well have sailed according to the FA as there is not enough time to plan training bases, hotels and ensure that the stadiums that would be used for the rest of the fixtures aren't replacing their pitches, as well as considering ticket changes to new stadia.

What a blummin' mess though.

 

[Essexyellows]

Euro 2020: Glasgow and Dublin at risk of being cut from host cities

Glasgow and Dublin are at growing risk of being cut from the list of host cities for this summer's European Championship.

www.bbc.co.uk

So the ramifications of UEFA's pig-headedness at continuing with the multi-city pan-European tournament are looking like they will be felt fairly soon. Dublin and Glasgow could potentially lose their games.

I know no one has a crystal ball and will be able to tell you what the COVID situation will be like in the summer but surely an approach of 'err on the side of caution' is better than the 'it'll take place as planned with fans in attendance' which seems to have been UEFA's message throughout. The issue is that they're now leaving it very late to make any form of decision either way. Will it be a fanless tournament held in multiple cities essentially rendering the whole idea pointless anyway, a fan filled 12-city tournament/super spreader event, quarter full stadiums of locals only, thrown to a nation willing to deal with the logistics at late notice or be cancelled altogether?

With a tad more planning and some UEFA bonzo with a grain of commonsense, it could have been held in one country (England being an obvious candidate having the semi-finals and final package already) but that ship may well have sailed according to the FA as there is not enough time to plan training bases, hotels and ensure that the stadiums that would be used for the rest of the fixtures aren't replacing their pitches, as well as considering ticket changes to new stadia.

What a blummin' mess though.

Bring in the Boris!!

PM launches incredible bid to save Euro 2020 by hosting entire tournament in UK

Boris Johnson has offered to host every European Championship game in the UK this summer – and wants the World Cup in Britain and Ireland in 2030. The Euros – pushed back a year due to …

talksport.com

We`ll do the lot we`ll all be jabbed!

 

[SteMerritt]

Bring in the Boris!!

PM launches incredible bid to save Euro 2020 by hosting entire tournament in UK

Boris Johnson has offered to host every European Championship game in the UK this summer – and wants the World Cup in Britain and Ireland in 2030. The Euros – pushed back a year due to …

talksport.com

We`ll do the lot we`ll all be jabbed!

What, with our border "controls" allowing anyone in with minimal checks, virus or not?

Just bin the lot, and focus on the next World Cup.

 

[tonyw]

As things stand, if one of the other teams in Italy's group (Group A) made a run to the semi-finals, they could easily be traveling from Baku, Azerbaijan to Rome to Bucharest to Saint Petersburg, and then to London for the semis.

It's an absurd schedule at the best of times, but even worse in 2021 when they're going to be doing what every piece of Covid guidance from just about any country says you shouldn't do - travel liberally between different European nations.

This sort of schedule could just about be justified if there were going to be full stadia everywhere - give the chance for supporters across Europe to enjoy the games.

But with only a fraction of fans getting to go, the risk just isn't worth it.

UEFA should take BoJo up on his offer, play everything in England. And then they can do their tour of Europe whenever the next tournament to be awarded is, and there (hopefully) isn't a pandemic on.