Concacaf to resume 2020 Champions League in December

After months of planning, Concacaf has revealed its strategy to resume the 2020 Champions League. The tournament was postponed in March because of the coronavirus crisis but will resume with the eight quarter-finalists playing in stadiums located in the United States for seven knockout games between 15-22 December.

The stadiums will be announced later this month. The teams from Major League Soccer that are still in the tournament are Atlanta United, New York City FC, Los Angeles FC and Montreal Impact. These teams will have a tight schedule because the MLS Cup final is set to be played on 12 December.

“Concacaf has developed extensive new SCCL regulations to ensure the delivery of a safe and highly controlled environment for all the players, coaches, team staff and officials who will participate. These include a high-frequency COVID-19 testing regime before and during the competition and robust health and safety protocols which will be strictly applied,” read the statement from Concacaf.

Single elimination matches

Three of the four quarter-final series are at the halfway stage, so they will resume with a second leg at a neutral venue, with the away-goal rule and a penalty shootout to decide the tie if necessary. The tie that will be decided by a one single knockout game is the quarter final between Los Angeles FC and Cruz Azul which will be played without extra-time, if necessary the game will be decided by penalties if the score is level after 90 minutes.

The semi-finals will also be single-elimination games with no extra-time and with penalties if required. The final will include 30 minutes of extra-time if necessary and the winner of this years’ tournament will directly qualify for the FIFA Club World Cup.