Rome – Now it’s official: UEFA has awarded the European Championship 2032 to Italy and Türkiye. The Executive of the European confederation, in Nyon, in fact voted yes to the joint candidacy: the assignment to Rome and Istanbul had appeared certain since the choice of the two countries, three months ago, to present themselves together, as the sole candidacy for the edition that will take place in nine years. The 2028 European Championship has been awarded to England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Ireland, also in this case unique candidates.
Present at the official announcement in Nyon was the Italian delegation led by the federal president and UEFA vice president Gabriele Gravina. The blue group includes the general secretary Marco Brunelli and the Euro 2032 project manager Antonio Talarico. For Turkey, the president of the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) Mehmet Buyukeksi, the general secretary Kadir Kardas, the vice president Mustafa Erogut, and the Turkish ambassador Volkan Demirel were present. Italy and Turkey will now have to choose the 5 stadiums for each country that will host the matches. The cities at stake for Italy are Rome, Milan, Turin, Verona, GenoaBologna, Florence, Naples, Bari and Cagliari: they will have to present the projects by the end of 2026.
Minister Abodi: “Great opportunity for Italy”
“Euro 2032 also assigned to Italy represents a great opportunity that will have to generate positive legacies well before that appointment and not only in the cities directly involved in the event”, states the Minister for Sport and Youth, Andrea Abodi. “Good work to the FIGC to which we will give all our support in helping to organize this fascinating event, of which the positive impacts it will have from a tourism point of view are not overlooked, but which we hope will, as a priority, contribute to the improvement of political relations in benefit of peace”.
Gravina (FIGC): “Historic turning point, now to revolutionize the idea of infrastructure in our country”
“The assignment of Euro 2032 to Italy with Turkey is a historic turning point for us. It is a great opportunity to revolutionize the idea of infrastructure in our country”, says FIGC president Gabriele Gravina, after the UEFA decision. “We have had 3 years to collect ideas, plan and then implement – said the FIGC president, to Sky – We are not starting at a disadvantage: in the candidacy, 3 stadiums were considered positively, 2 or 3 are missing”. “We trust in everyone’s support – concludes Gravina – starting from the Government. An extraordinary commissioner for stadiums is welcome but don’t delude yourself that he is enough on his own”.
Gravina explained that Italy will have until October 1, 2026 to define and design the five Italian stadiums for the Euro 2032 edition, and work must begin by March 31, 2027. “We often talk about bureaucratic problems for the stadiums – added the FIGC president -, but we must make an entrepreneurial evaluation. Let us join efforts to exploit this opportunity with all the actors. We must go beyond the identification of five stadiums, it is a great stimulus to revolutionize the culture of our country’s infrastructure.” As for the political significance of an Italy-Turkey European Championship, “it is one of the most important occasions in the history of European football, it is an event of European importance. Football must be a vehicle of contamination, capable of breaking down barriers, creating dialogue between peoples , building bridges of peace”.
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