UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin speaks during the 44th Ordinary UEFA Congress in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, on Tuesday. Credit: Robin van Lonkhuijsen/ANP/AFP/Getty Images

The head of European football's governing body has insisted that the Euro 2020 soccer tournament will go ahead as planned

Speaking at a press conference in Amsterdam, UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin said: “Let’s be optimistic and not talk about dark scenarios.”

“You don't know how many concerns we have when we organize a big competition […] We have security concerns, we have political instability concerns and one of those concerns is the virus. We are dealing with it and we are confident that we can deal with it," he said.

Čeferin added that UEFA is in constant close contact with the World Health Organization and European governments on public health advice.

Theodore Theodoridis, UEFA General Secretary, added that the governing body “didn’t want to overreact” when it came to speculation about moving games during this summer’s tournament.

He stated that the immediate priority for the organization was the UEFA Euro 2020 play-off semi-finals and finals which are due to be played on Thursday 27 and Tuesday 31 March.

UEFA also confirmed that it has set up a working group with the European Leagues association to handle any fixture congestion which may be caused by coronavirus postponements.