2020 has been such a hard year for global sport with a lot of major events being canceled or postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, the coming year 2021 will feature several high-profile events, including Tokyo Olympics and UEFA Euro 2020.
Tokyo Olympics
The 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, planned for July 2020, were postponed in March due to the world health crisis. The rescheduled Olympics will now be held from July 23 to August 8 while the Paralympics will be held between August 24 and September 5, 2021.
The tournament will still be called the 2020 Olympics, but they have been altered by the coronavirus. Tokyo 2020 organizers and the Japanese government are struggling to make decision whether to allow foreign spectators and what safeguards and restrictions will be put in place, particularly since the events will bring together more than 11,000 athletes from 206 countries, more than 5,000 officials and coaches, 20,000 media representatives from all over the world, and 60,000 volunteers.
Athletes will be asked to arrive late and leave early in order to minimize their time in the Olympic village, avoid physical contact, refrain from speaking loudly, and wear masks when not training or competing. They also will be tested every four to five days.
Euro 2020
A week before the Tokyo Olympics were postponed, the UEFA Euro 2020 was postponed to 2021. The 24-team Championship will now take place between June 11 and July 11, 2021.
It will still be called Euro 2020 and if the circumstances of the pandemic allow, it is scheduled to stick to the original multi-national format.
Rome’s Stadio Olimpico will host the opening match. England’s national stadium Wembley will stage the semi-finals and the final as well.
It is too soon to say whether matches will be played with or without spectators with so many unpredictable circumstances, even though more than 45,000 tickets have been sold in the UEFA ballot.