Police in Paris say Wednesday’s match between Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund must be staged without fans present.
The second leg of the Champions League last 16 tie between Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund will be played behind closed doors.
The Paris prefecture of police confirmed on Monday March 9th, that the decision had been taken as part of measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus.
In a statement, PSG said they accepted the decision and assured that each team remained “fully mobilised to organise the meeting in the best possible conditions”.
They added, “Supporters who have purchased their tickets, as well as members, will be informed very soon of the measures proposed by Paris Saint-Germain.
“The club thanks all supporters for their understanding and their support for the team.”
Also the regional government of Catalonia suggested that the match between Barcelona and Napoli scheduled March 18th will be played behind close doors.
France has recorded 1,116 cases of coronavirus, with 19 people dead.
UEFA president, Aleksander Ceferin called for people not to obsess over dark scenarios as European football’s governing body considered the ramifications for the Champions League and Euro 2020 amid the outbreak.
“We are dealing with it and we are confident we can deal with it,” he said. “You don’t know how many big concerns we have: we have security concerns, political instability and one is also the virus.
“Let’s try to be optimistic, not think about dark scenarios, there’s time for that later,” he added.
The German club, RB Leipzig also confirmed that their last-16 second leg at home to Tottenham was presently neither at risk of being called off nor of having to be held behind closed doors.
“The game is currently not at risk of cancellation due to the recent coronavirus outbreak,” the Bundesliga club said on Twitter.
“We remain in close contact with health authorities and the match will go ahead as planned, with the fans being able to enjoy the match in the ground.”
