UEFA President slams "bandits and crooks" bumping up hotel prices for Euro 2012

By Andrew Warshaw

April 13 – The decision to grant the 2012 European Championships to Poland and Ukraine has once again been brought into sharp focus with UEFA President Michel Platini attacking the “bandits and crooks” who have made Ukrainian hotel costs prohibitive for the average fan.

Speaking in Lviv, one of the smaller host cities close to the Polish border hoping to cash in on the tournament, Platini (pictured right) called on local authorities to intervene to stop hotels illegally hiking up prices.

“It’s annoying to have made a lot of investment and then say to people that they can’t come because there are bandits and crooks who want to make a lot of money during this Euro,” Platini said.

“You can’t change [the price of a room] from €40 (£33/$52) to 100 (£83/$132) and then up to 500 (£413/$659) just like that, from one day to the other, this just is not done.

“I hope for your sake ([Ukraine] that the contracts which hoteliers have made will be respected as otherwise the people are not going to come.”

The cheapest Lviv hotel listed on UEFA’s Championship website as available for the Germany-Portugal match on June 9 charges €195 (£161/$257) per night.

For the Ukraine-Sweden match on June 11 in Kiev, offers start at €104 (£86/$137).

Euro 2012 begins on June 8 and Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Borys Kolesnikov (pictured left with Ukraine’s President Viktor Yanukovych and Platini) has promised to take appropriate measures to clamp down on exorbitant fees that are deterring thousands of fans from travelling to the Championships.

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