The Premier League and other top-flight European football leagues have been told by UEFA that they want the current season finished by June 30.
Leagues across the continent have been suspended amid the worldwide coronavirus pandemic which has led to huge disruption in daily lives across the globe.
At a meeting on Tuesday, UEFA agreed to postpone next summer’s Euro 2020 finals by a year in order to free up space for leagues across Europe to finish their domestic campaigns.
That remains the overwhelming priority of both the leagues and the vast majority of their clubs, although time is of the essence due to the severity of COVID-19 and the fact that many contracts and transfer deals are tied into that June 30 date.
UEFA have also agreed to move the Champions League and Europa League finals back to late June on Tuesday, while the Premier League have agreed to meet on Thursday in order to thrash out what they plan to do next.
“We all know that this terrible virus that is all across Europe made football and all life in Europe quite impossible. We knew we had to stop the competitions,” said UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin.
“We think postponing the Euros was the only way to give a chance to all the national leagues and all the club competitions to finish their competitions.
“That is not sure for now but we should now think about the health of the fans and the players.
"We also have to think about football as a whole, the whole ecosystem of football.
“That is why we have decided today to postpone the Euros and we have full, 100 per cent support of all 55 national associations, the European leagues, the European Club Association and FIFPro.”
However, European football's governing body are aware that the situation is fluid, and that if the pandemic worsens, then certain dates simply won't be achievable.
