By Tom Degun in London
July 8 – The Premier League is in negotiations with London 2012 officials to leave the sporting calendar in Britain free during the period of the Olympics, which are due to open on July 27 and finish on August 12.
They are currently set to take place at the same time as the Community Shield, the fixture between the Premier League Champions and the FA Cup winners, which is commonly held on the second weekend of August.
With the Community Shield normally taking place at Wembley Stadium, there will be a clear logistical problem in 2012 as the Olympic football finals will take place at the venue on that particular weekend.
But London 2012 chief executive Paul Deighton revealed that the organisation have been in talks with all the relevant sporting bodies in England concerning potential clashes with the Olympics and the possibility of moving them back to avoid the Games.
Speaking at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Coordination Commission closing press conference here, Deighton said: “We have been in discussions with all the sports bodies responsible for sports schedules in 2012 and we are on track to meet our obligation.”
Asked whether he was confident the Premier League would delay the Community Shield as well as the start of their season in 2012, he replied: “Yes”.
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