Emergency Panel decisions

The UEFA Emergency Panel met on 16 July and decided that, due to the current security situation in Israel, no UEFA competition matches may be played in the country until further notice. Consequently, the Israeli clubs involved in forthcoming fixtures have been requested to propose alternative venues outside of Israel's territory for their home legs in the 2014/15 UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League.

Based on an updated assessment of the security situation in Ukraine, meanwhile, the UEFA Emergency Panel has decided to allow UEFA club competition matches to be played in Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa, in addition to Kyiv and Lviv. This concerns FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk and FC Chornomorets Odesa, entering the third qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League respectively.

In light of the current political situation, the Russian Football Union (RFS) and the Football Federation of Ukraine (FFU) have expressed concerns about safety and security in the case of Russian and Ukrainian teams being drawn against each other in UEFA competition. After evaluating the request and taking into account the safety and security situation in the region, the UEFA Emergency Panel has decided that Ukrainian and Russian teams cannot be drawn against each other until further notice. Consequently, FC Zenit and Dnipro will be prevented from being pitted together when the UEFA Champions League third qualifying round draw is made on 18 July.

Following a recommendation by the UEFA Club Competitions Committee – in order to implement in UEFA club competitions a rule which is already in force in the UEFA European Football Championship – the Emergency Panel decided that, as of this season, all yellow cards from the beginning of the group stage will expire on completion of the quarter-finals. Bookings will therefore not be carried forward to the semi-finals.