Belarus will play their home matches in Hungary

Belarus will play two Euro 2024 qualifiers at home in Hungary in June, the Hungarian Football Association announced on Saturday, as UEFA ordered Belarus to play on neutral ground.

Unlike Russia, excluded from UEFA competitions due to the invasion of Ukraine, its ally Belarus has not been banned by the European body.

After being contacted,the Hungarian federation recommended to the Belarusian federation several stadiums of suitable category, among which it chose the stadium of Ujpest FC“, the Ferenc-Szusza stadium in Budapest, announced the Hungarian federation in a press release sent to theAFP. Belarus will face Israel behind closed doors on June 16 and then Kosovo three days later.

Belarus started qualifying for Euro-2024 with two defeats against Switzerland (5-0, match relocated to Serbia) and Romania (2-1) in Group I.

The Hungarian federation specifies that the agreement with its Belarusian counterpart has been validated by UEFA and that “all costs related to the organization will be borne by the Belarusian federation».

A member of NATO and the European Union, Hungary has been acting since the beginning of the Russian offensive in Ukraine against the tide of its EU partners and its leader Viktor Orban has not cut ties with the Russian President Vladimir Putin.

In February, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto traveled to Minsk before hosting his Belarusian counterpart in Budapest last month.