Champions League aims for Final Four in Turkey

UEFA is preparing a revolutionary formula to close European competitions. The plan is to turn to Final Four format. The four teams that reach the semifinals they will dispute the title in two semis to single match and in the final. The three clashes would be disputed en a single city, Istanbul, which was destined to host the traditional Champions League final on May 30. The same plan, the final to four, would apply in the Europa League, which would host the last four teams in the Polish city of Gdansk.

The project will be voted on Tuesday, at the meeting to be held by representatives of the 55 UEFA federations who will be consulted by videoconference. The organization's secretary of competitions, Giorgio Marchetti, is in charge of presenting the plan, which is seen as the most feasible given that nobody knows at this time when the coronavirus crisis can be stopped.

UEFA, which has been widely criticized for its delay in suspending competitions, it has already assumed that the governments of the different countries of the European Union are not willing to risk the outbreak of the disease. And that requires the prohibition of crowds, such as those that occur in stadiums.

UEFA's priority at the moment is close the round of 16 (Real Madrid must still play the return leg against Manchester and Barça against Naples because Atlético has already eliminated Liverpool) and from this moment proceed to the draw for the quarterfinals. In that sense, it would be necessary to decide where those shocks are played. One option would be in a neutral stadium and another, in one of those involved in the crossing, but by lottery.

Thereafter, the Final Four formula would be chosen. It would allow concentrating the semifinals and the final of the Champions League and the Europa League in a period of only four days, which would open more gaps in the calendar to close the different league championships that have been postponed throughout Europe, and at the same time concentrate to hobbies in a single city, which would reduce the risk of more travel throughout the continent.

For the UEFA plan to go ahead, In addition to the favorable vote of its 55 federations, you will need the approval of FIFA, who should give up the dates of the Club World Cup to make room for Euro 2021.