UEFA has confirmed its final selection of stadiums for this summer's European Championships with the Republic of Ireland and Spanish city Bilbao losing games after being unable to offer assurances that fans could attend fixtures.
Euro 2020, delayed by a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, will now take place in 11 nations with the four matches due to be played at Dublin's Aviva Stadium reassigned. Saint Petersburg will host three group games while the round of 16 match has transferred to London's Wembley Stadium, which will also play host to both semi-finals and the final.
Meanwhile the four matches that were scheduled for Bilbao's San Mames will now take place in Seville's Estadio La Cartuja after the Andalusian government confirmed its intention to allow 30 percent capacity for the games in the stadium. European football's governing body said moving fixtures to venues that can permit fans to attend "will allow a festive atmosphere at all matches taking place in UEFA's flagship national team competition."
The German city of Munich also had its hosting of fixtures confirmed after committing to a minimum of 14,500 fans at the Allianz Arena.
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UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin said: "We have been working diligently with the host associations and local authorities to ensure a safe and festive environment at the games and I am really pleased that we are able to welcome spectators at all matches for a celebration of national team football across the continent".
Former UEFA president Michel Platini had viewed the tournament, which was scheduled to take place on the 60th anniversary of the first European Championships, as a transcontinental celebration of football with 12 host cities from Dublin in the west to Baku in the east. Even before the disruption caused by the coronavirus those plans were not universally popular from an environmental or fan experience perspective.
There will also be questions about the sporting balance of a tournament that has Poland playing group stage fixtures in Russia, Spain and then Russia while the likes of England, Italy and the Netherlands play all their games at home.
Euro 2020 hosts
- Wembley Stadium, London, England
- Allianz Arena, Munich, Germany
- Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy
- Olympic Stadium, Baku, Azerbaijan
- Puskas Arena, Budapest, Hungary
- Johann Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland
- Estadio La Cartuja, Seville, Spain
- Arena Nationala, Bucharest, Romania
- Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg, Russia
