WALES STEP UP BID FOR EURO 2020 MATCHES
WALES football chiefs have temporarily put aside the hunt for Chris Coleman’s successor as they embark upon a new charm offensive in a bid to land Euro 2020 matches for Cardiff.
The FA of Wales have formally submitted what they feel is an excellent technical bid to host four group games and a last 16 knockout tie at the Principality Stadium as doubts continue over the ability of Brussels to host matches.
But they are following that up with the personal touch, trying to lobby every single member of UEFA’s 18-man executive committee in the coming days to underline just what Cardiff could bring to the party.
UEFA are staging the next tournament across 13 cities to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the European Championships, but Brussels looks like being ruled out because building work has yet to begin on their planned new 60,000-seater EuroStadium.
Wales are vying with Stockholm and Wembley to get the four games Brussels may lose and the FAW hierarchy are leaving no stone unturned in the three-way fight.
FAW chief executive Jonathan Ford and President David Griffiths, who also head up the hunt for the new manager, fly to Nyon on Monday to put their case in person to UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin Nyon.
Together with Alan Hamer, who helped bring the Champions League final to Wales, they are also paying a number of flying visits to speak to committee members who will make the decision on December 7.
As well as talking up the magnitude of the 74,000-seater Principality Stadium, Wales will point to their success in staging the Champions League Final and the UEFA Super Cup, and the phenomenal Cardiff sporting experience for big occasions.
FA Cup finals and the Rugby World Cup final have also been successfully staged in the Welsh capital with fans speaking highly of each and every occasion.
The FAW’s mantra is that they should be left with no regrets on December 8, confident they have done everything in their power to persuade UEFA’s powerbrokers to vote for Wales.
However, they also feel actions speak louder than words and will point to the fresh in the memory phenomenal atmosphere before, during and after Real Madrid’s win over Juventus in Cardiff just five months ago.
Wembley, Munich, Rome, Amsterdam, Budapest, Dublin, Glasgow, Bucharest, Bilbao, Copenhagen, St Petersburg and the Azerbaiijan capital of Baku are 12 chosen cities to host Euro 2020 matches.
Brussels was selected as a 13th, but that was on the proviso of the new EuroStadium staging games. The project has been fraught with problems and UEFA may rule out Belgium.
If so, they will need to make a call between Cardiff, Stockholm and Wembley,
The first challenge for Wales’ new manager will be to lead the team to those finals, hopefully played on home soil.
Tony Pulis and Ryan Giggs are the favourites for the post, but Craig Bellamy and French legend Thierry Henry are amongst other candidates being actively considered.