Date:27/09/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/09/27/stories/2008092752642000.htm

Sport - Football

Euro to expand to 24 teams

BORDEAUX: UEFA ruled on Friday that Poland and Ukraine will keep the hosting rights to the 2012 European Championship, but warned they could still lose the tournament if preparations fall behind schedule.

UEFA also confirmed the 2016 championship will be expanded from 16 to 24 teams, approved a new name and format for the UEFA Cup and said it is looking into suspicious betting patterns from 25 lower-tier matches.

“The executive committee reconfirmed UEFA’s commitment to organize the 2012 European Championship in Poland and in the Ukraine,” UEFA president Michel Platini said. “At the same time, the executive committee stressed a number of conditions that must be met in order to bring forward the whole project.”

UEFA’s executive committee reviewed a report looking at whether both countries had made enough progress after concerns were raised over their preparations. Platini visited both countries in early July to inspect the state of readiness.

UEFA said progress has been achieved in the past six months, but that it was “neither uniform nor constant.”

“Both host countries must continue to make the necessary efforts as any slackening could put in doubt the organization of this tournament in these countries,” UEFA said.

The concerns

Platini elaborated on the concerns at a news conference. “We were promised new airports and we will not have new airports. We were promised new roads and we are still waiting,” he said. “Warsaw and Kiev are the key issues. We cannot organize a European competition without the capital city.”

Platini said the co-hosts “promised” that stadiums in Kiev and Warsaw will be ready in time.

UEFA said it will decide how many and which stadiums and cities will be used as venues for the competition, with a minimum of six and a maximum of eight. The number of venues will not necessarily be the same in each country.

“The governments of both countries must support their national associations and fulfil the commitments they gave to UEFA in the scope of the project, notably concerning accommodation and transport infrastructures,” UEFA said. — AP