Budapest is to host its first major European men’s football final after UEFA named the Hungarian capital’s Puskás Aréna as the location of the 2022 Europa League final.
Named in homage to former Hungary and Real Madrid idol Ferenc Puskás, the stadium is one of 12 that will host the UEFA EURO 2020 tournament.
It stands on the site of the former Nepstadion (People’s Stadium) which hosted Hungarian international games since 1953, including a famous 7-1 victory over England in 1954.
Artists such as like Queen, U2, the Rolling Stones and Michael Jackson have also performed there.
The new stadium was built at a reported cost of about 600 million euros. It officially opened in November 2019, welcoming more than 65,000 people to watch Hungary lose 2-1 in a friendly match against Uruguay.
Games to be played in Russia and elsewhere
Meanwhile, UEFA named Helsinki’s Finnish Olympic Stadium as the host of 2022 Super Cup — the traditional season-opening game between the previous Champion’s League and Europa League winners — and Russia’s Kazan Arena to host the 2023 Super Cup,
This decision comes against the World’s Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) recommendation to not award Russia major events for the next four years as a punishment for state-backed violation of doping rules. However, this applies to world championships and Olympics rather than continental level events, which includes the Europa League.
Among other decisions announced by the UEFA Executive Committee on Monday, the Women’s Champions League tournament was awarded to Turin, Italy, for 2022 and Eindhoven, Netherlands, for 2023.
Finally, the 2021 annual meeting of UEFA member federations will take place in Minsk, Belarus.
