And then, of course, there are the myriad demands being placed on the teams to ensure the tournament can play to a finish. “I have a feeling that whichever team handles all of these fears and responsibilities the best has a big chance to win,” Kahn said. They were presented with maps of the stadiums they will use, detailing where, precisely, their players will be allowed to warm up. So-called “fast feet” exercises must take place away from the playing surface, and the area in front of each goal-mouth must not be touched. Players will not be permitted to perform warm downs on the field at all, to protect the turf as much as possible for other matches.

Source: New York Times August 10, 2020 17:37 UTC