The effects of the near three-month suspension due to coronavirus will also lead to changes in the procedures for the 2020/21 season for VfL Women. Head coach Stephan Lerch’s side are set to return to training next Tuesday, 28 July, just 24 days before they face Glasgow City FC in the finals tournament for this season’s UEFA Women’s Champions League in San Sebastian (Friday 21 August, kick-off 18:00 CEST). Coronavirus testing will take place four days before the first session on the pitch.
Short training camp in Harsewinkel
Because of this tight timetable, there’ll be no week-long pre-season training camp in Austria this year. Instead, the reigning double winners will hold a shorter camp in Harsewinkel, North Rhine-Westphalia, from 11 to 14 August. A friendly against a fellow Bundesliga team is planned for the end of their stay. The new FLYERALARM Women’s Bundesliga season then kicks off on the first weekend of September, with the fixture list expected to be released in early August. As for the DFB Cup, the seven-time winners will begin the defence of their title on 31 October/1 November.
The schedule for the 2020/2021 Champions League is also different to normal, as only the Round of 32 will be played before the winter break (first legs 11/12 November, second legs 18/19 November). The remaining rounds will not be staged until the New Year.
