The Football Action To Watch This Summer

As we get into this year’s summer, it is exciting to know there are still many football matches in the pipeline despite the current situation. The Covid-19 pandemic has narrowed most of our summer plans, and we are left with a skeleton of what would otherwise have been a great summer of Euros, Olympics, etc. However, let us go through some of the football action you can still look forward to this summer.

• The FA Cup

The FA Cup is one of the thrilling English football events in the year’s calendar. If you were wondering what football games to watch this summer, then be glad because the final stages of the FA competition will unfold over the coming weeks.

The competition is now in the semi-finals stage, and the teams still in the competition include Manchester United, Chelsea, Manchester City and Arsenal. The semi-finals will be mouth-watering clashes as Man Utd face-off against Chelsea while Man City take on Arsenal, ensuring there will be a titanic clash in the final at Wembley . 

• The UEFA Europa League

The UEFA Europa League is set to resume on 5th August after it was suspended on March 12 following the surge of the Covid-19 pandemic. The UEFA Executive Committee has officially drafted a map for the remainder of the competition, although some few issues are yet to be clarified. Before the break, the competition had entered the knockout stage with nearly all first legs played except for Roma, Sevilla, Inter, and Getafe. The knockout stage is still unclear because the first leg of the competition was largely finished.  The quarter-finals and the semi-finals will be purely knockout matches across four cities in Germany. The knockouts will take place between 5th-6th august, quarters between 10-11th august, and semis between 16th -17th august. The finals will be played on 21st August in Cologne, Germany. 

• The UEFA Champions League

The 2019/2020 UEFA Champions League has also been on hold since March and is now scheduled to return on 7th August. Prior to the break, the competition was closing on the knockouts. PSG, Atletico Madrid, Atalanta, and Leipzig were already through to the quarter-finals. However, the likes of Chelsea, Bayern, Napoli, Barcelona, Juventus, and Lyon had not played their second leg matches.

This gives UEFA a headache as to whether to play these Matches in Lisbon or the home team’s stadium.  However, the second legs of the knockout stages will take place between 7th-8th August while the quarters and the semis will take place in Lisbon between 12th -15th and 18th-19th August respectively. The finals will take place in Benfica, Lisbon, on 23rd August. 

• The English Premier League

The restart of the English premier league perfectly coincided with the start of this year’s summer. With lots of great encounters set to get rolling, this summer is fully baked with football.  The EPL has some of the world’s most valuable soccer teams, and it is easy to see why plenty of fans are buzzing now it’s returned. Liverpool have already wrapped-up the title but the race for the top four, the relegation battle, and the Europa League qualification fight means there is still plenty left to play for. 

• The Serie A

The Italian Serie A became one of the first European Leagues to break following the Coronavirus fears. The restart again comes at a time when the summer season is on the onset. Perhaps what makes Serie A football worth watching is the fact that the race for the title is still much alive. 

Juventus is narrowly leading the race ahead of Lazio and Inter Milan. This chase will surely go the wire, and there are many remaining matches to enjoy this summer!  

• The MLS

The 2020 MLS season is coming back, and the schedule is appetizing. The MLS season restarts on July 8 and is set to go on until the winner is determined in November. All the 26 MLS teams will congregate at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at World Disney Resort in Florida.  The season will play as a tournament and will start with group stages that will run for 16 consecutive days. Each team will play three group stage matches resembling the FIFA World Cup format. There will be continuous schedules as most games will play from 8 a.m., 9 p.m. or 10 p.m. EDT. A maximum of five substitutions will be allowed as per the new IFAB protocol.  The winner of the tournament will qualify for the 2021 Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League. There will be lots of games during this tournament and will no doubt breathe life to this summer. 

Wrap up

Unlike the previous years, this summer is unique in the sense that it wasn’t planned for! That said, there are some great football actions lining up. In fact, what we have just highlighted is the tip of the iceberg. At least there will be lots of soccer to watch as fans stay at home around the world.