Russian federation angry about moving Champions League final to Paris | Football

The decision was made by UEFA’s executive committee at an extraordinary meeting on Friday morning.

“It is a shame that this decision has been made,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. “Saint Petersburg could have provided the best possible conditions to host this football event.”

The Russian Football Association RFU is also not pleased with the decision. “We believe that the decision was motivated by political motives. The RFU has always adhered to the principle ‘sport is outside politics’ and therefore cannot support this decision,” said chairman Aleksandr Djukov on the union’s site.

The RFU also says it does not approve of Russian sports teams now having to play matches on neutral ground instead of in their own country. “This is against the principle of sport and infringes on the interests of players, coaches and fans.”

Stade de France

It is the third time that the Champions League final will be played at the Stade de France. In 2000 Real Madrid was 3-0 too strong for Valencia in the final battle and in 2006 FC Barcelona defeated Arsenal 2-1.

The Stade de France, which is used for various sporting events and concerts, has a capacity of over 80,000 spectators.

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Ajax

The final is scheduled for May 28. Initially, the game would be played in the Krestovski Stadium, the home of Zenit. The stadium was used during the 2018 World Cup and the European Championship last year.

Ajax is still active in the Champions League. The team from Amsterdam played a 2-2 draw against Benfica in the eighth finals on Wednesday. The return is in Amsterdam in mid-March.

UEFA also announced that Russian and Ukrainian clubs and national teams participating in international competitions must play home games at neutral venues “until further notice”.