Hampden loses out to Rome in bid to stage Euro 2020 curtain-raiser
● Wembley to host seven matches after Uefa drops Brussels over stadium delay
Hampden Park has missed out on staging the opening game of the 2020 European Championship after Uefa announced that Rome’s Stadio Olimpico will host the tournament curtain-raiser.
The Glasgow ground had been vying for the showpiece opening match with the Krestovsky Stadium in St Petersburg, Amsterdam’s Johan Cruyff Arena and the Stadio Olimpico, with the honour going to the Italian venue.
Brussels had also been in the running but has been dropped as a host city by Uefa, with its three group-stage games and one last-16 match reallocated to London because of delays in building a new 60,000-capacity Eurostadium on the site of Heysel. Wembley, which has been paired with Hampden to host the six matches in Group D, will now stage a total of seven games during the 24-team tournament. Hampden is already guaranteed to host three games from the group stages and one from the last 16.
Cardiff’s Principality Stadium and Stockholm’s Friends Arena – the venues for last season’s finals of the Champions League and Europa League respectively – had hoped to pick up Brussels’ games.
However, Uefa opted for Wembley, which has already been chosen as the venue for the semi-finals and final.
Staged across 12 countries, Euro 2020’s unusual format was former Uefa president Michel Platini’s brainchild – a one-off gesture to celebrate the tournament’s 60th birthday. As well as deciding where the first game, on 12 June, will
0 Hampden is already guaranteed to stage four Euro 2020 games. be and what to do about Brussels’ difficulties, the executive committee announced where each of the six groups’ games will be played.
Baku and Rome will host Group A; Group B’s games will take place in Copenhagen and Stpetersburg;amsterdamand Bucharest get Group C; Glasgow and London share Group D; Group E will be staged in Bilbao and Dublin; while Group F’s fixtures will be in Budapest and Munich.
In a statement, the Football Association of Wales said it was “extremely disappointed” with the news its bid for four Euro 2020 games had been unsuccessful.
“Over the past four years, Wales has successfully staged three Uefa events – firstly, the Super Cup final in 2014, followed by the men’s and women’s Champions League finals in June this year,” it said.
“Uefa ranked the Champions League final as one of their best events and praised the way in which the Cardiff 2017 local organising committee delivered the showpiece.
“The concept of taking Euro 2020 to 13 different countries was devised to allow smaller countries, like Wales, to have a unique opportunity of being involved in staging a major tournament. Wales has never staged a Euro or World Cup final and this was its one and only chance of doing so.
“The FAW complied with all of the bid requirements and has written to Uefa to request feedback on the decision so that it can understand the reasons behind the vote for future reference.”
While the decision has come as a blow to the Welsh, and Belgians, it is a major coup for the Football Association, London and Wembley Stadium, which hosted several games in the 1996 tournament. If England qualify for Euro 2020, they will play at least two group-stage games at Wembley, just as Scotland and Ireland will get two home games if they reach the tournament.