UEFA reschedules postponed matches

A banner is removed at Barcelona's Nou Camp stadium following the cancellations Keystone

European football's governing body, UEFA, has announced new dates for the matches that were postponed this week as a mark of respect for the victims of Tuesday's terrorist attacks in the United States

More than 40 UEFA Cup games were called off following the tragedy. UEFA said the matches would now be rescheduled for Thursday September 20.

A further eight Champions League matches, originally due to be played on Wednesday, will now take place on October 10.

“After examining the international and club match calendar across Europe we believe that we have found the best possible solution for the rescheduling of these matches,” said UEFA spokesman Mike Lee.

Three Swiss clubs were among those affected by the UEFA Cup cancellations. The Grasshoppers Zurich team, who were due to play Dinamo Bucharest away, were already at the airport when the news came through.

St Gallen and Servette Geneva were the other Swiss teams involved in the rescheduling. Both sides were due to play at home.

Many sections of the sporting world are still assessing how best to react to the events in the United States.

IOC considers security

On Thursday, the International Olympic Committee said it would be discussing security implications for next year’s Winter Games at an executive board meeting in Lausanne next week.

IOC president Jacques Rogge said the board would listen to “its American friends” with respect to reassessing or modifying security measures. However, he did not indicate which areas of security would be reviewed.

In the United States, meanwhile, the PGA Tour has postponed the American Express Championship in St Louis, which had been scheduled to tee off on Thursday, featuring Tiger Woods and other top golfers.

Earlier, Major League Baseball postponed its whole schedule of 15 games. The last time the entire schedule of baseball games was shelved was for D-day in 1944.

Several college football games have also been cancelled, and the NFL is still deciding on whether to play on Sunday.

swissinfo with agencies