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Copa América postponed until 2021 because of coronavirus by South America’s CONMEBOL

The tournament was to be played this summer in Colombia and Argentina. It will now be played from June 11 to July 11 of next year, the same dates as the postponed European Championship.

Lionel Messi (left) with some of his Argentina national team colleagues during the 2019 Copa América.
Lionel Messi (left) with some of his Argentina national team colleagues during the 2019 Copa América.Read moreRicardo Mazalan / AP
    by Mauricio Savarese, Associated Press
    Published 

SAO PAULO (AP) — The Copa America was postponed until 2021 on Tuesday because of the coronavirus outbreak.

South American soccer body CONMEBOL said the tournament in Colombia and Argentina will be played between June 11 and July 11 — the same dates as the postponed European Championship.

"It is an extraordinary measure for an unexpected situation, and it answers the fundamental need to avoid an exponential development of the virus, which is already present in all countries that are members of the confederation," CONMEBOL President Alejandro Domínguez said in a statement.

"We also thank UEFA and its president, Aleksander Čeferin, for the joint work and the coordinated decision to also postpone Euro 2020 for the benefit of all the soccer family."

The last Copa America was played in Brazil in 2019 and won by the hosts. This year's edition was expected to open a new era with the tournament every four years, at the same time as the European Championship.

CONMEBOL had already suspended its club competitions, the Copa Libertadores and the Copa Sudamericana, because of the outbreak.