Uefa has drawn the expected conclusion: the final of the Champions League will not take place in St. Petersburg because of the Russian attack on Ukraine. A replacement location has already been named.
The Champions League final will be held on May 28 in Paris instead of St. Petersburg. The decision was made by the Executive Committee of the European Football Union on Friday at a crisis meeting due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Venue will be the Stade de France in the suburb of St. Denis.
In addition, the Uefa committee around the top German official Rainer Koch decided that Russian and Ukrainian clubs in the current European Cup competitions must host their home games on neutral ground. This also applies to the national teams of the two countries in the Nations League from this summer. The playoffs in qualifying for the World Cup in Qatar, which are due in March, are FIFA competitions and the responsibility of the world governing body.
Uefa thanks President Macron
Already on Thursday it was reported from Uefa circles that St. Petersburg will be denied the role of host for the most important club final this season because of the military attack by Russia. However, a quick decision for a replacement location had not yet been expected.
In a statement on Friday, Uefa thanked French President Emmanuel Macron “for his personal support and commitment to moving the most prestigious game in European club football to France at a time of unprecedented crisis.”
Uefa had moved the premier class finals to Lisbon in 2020 and to Porto in 2021 due to the corona pandemic. Istanbul is planned as the final venue in 2023, London in 2024 and Munich in 2025. In the current competition, FC Bayern Munich is the only remaining German representative in the current round of 16.
Source: Stern
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