By Andrew Warshaw
April 26 – Traditional powerhouse rivals Germany and England will go head to head off the pitch for the right to stage the semifinals and final of Euro 2020 after Turkish officials unexpectedly withdrew favourites Istanbul from the running in order to concentrate solely on 2024.
UEFA today revealed that 19 candidates had put forward bid dossiers by the midnight Friday deadline to host the innovative pan-European tournament, with only Germany (Munich) and England (Wembley) offering to stage the climax of the 24-team tournament.
Brainchild of UEFA boss Michel Platini, the pan-European finals are being staged in 13 cities across the Continent to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the competition. Twelve of them will each stage three group matches, to be divided into geographical zones, plus a match from either the round of 16 or knockout stage while the 13th will stage the two semi-finals plus the final. UEFA’s executive committee will choose the winners on September 19 in Geneva.
Azerbaijan, Belarus, Israel and Macedonia are among those who have never hosted a major tournament. Only one venue per city can be used. Importantly, berths will not automatically be awarded to the national teams of selected host cities.
The full list of those who had sent dossiers before the deadline is: Azerbaijan (Baku), Belarus (Minsk), Belgium (Brussels), Bulgaria (Sofia), Denmark (Copenhagen), England (London), Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (Skopje), Germany (Munich), Hungary (Budapest), Israel (Jerusalem), Italy (Rome), Netherlands (Amsterdam), Republic of Ireland (Dublin), Romania (Bucharest), Russia (Saint Petersburg), Scotland (Glasgow), Spain (Bilbao), Sweden (Stockholm), Wales (Cardiff).
Initially, 32 associations had expressed an interest in hosting but in the days leading up to Friday’s deadline, 13 had pulled out, most notably Turkey whom Platini had personally endorsed as favourites after they lost out to France by a single vote for 2016.
Explaining its decision, the Turkish Football Federation said on its website: “We will soon have the 13 stadiums that suit the capacity criteria of the European Football Championship.
“That being the case, Turkey is in a position to host the whole tournament by itself with its communication infrastructure, travelling and accommodation opportunities and above all, passion for football. For this reason our board today decided not to bid for the semi-final and final games of Euro 2020.”
Turkey’s strategic decision took most neutral observers by surprise especially as Istanbul – which came second to Tokyo in the race for the 2020 Olympic Games, freeing up the country to go for the Euros instead – is expected to launch another Olympic bid for 2024. Such a move would again present a potential conflict in terms of bidding for two of the world’s biggest sporting events in the same year.
Turkey’s move left only England and Germany, who each put forward two separate bids for 2020 packages, as the only countries in the running for the showpiece finale. Nevertheless, Platini declared himself satisfied with the numbers of interested parties.
“We are extremely happy to have received so many bids,” said Platini. “The 60th year anniversary edition of the tournament will be an historic one, with matches played in many European countries. By spreading the EURO across our continent, we will allow more fans from more nations to share in the excitement of hosting such a magical event.”
Since the completion of its redevelopment in 2007, Wembley now holds 90,000 spectators, compared with 71,137 at Allianz Arena, home of Bundesliga and European champions Bayern Munich. England last hosted the Euros in 1996, Germany eight years earlier.
No recent hosts took the risk of bidding again. The Swiss, who had put forward Basel as their proposed venue, co-hosted Euro 2008 with Austria. “We felt that countries which have hosted the European Championship in the last 12 years had, at the very best, a very slight chance of being considered for Euro 2020,” said SFV president Peter Gilleron in a statement.
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