DUE TO Russia's invasion of Ukraine yesterday Uefa have confirmed that the Champions League will now be taken away from Saint Petersburg on Saturday, May 28.The game will now be moved to at the Stade de France in Paris
The original venue home to Zenit St Petersburg, the Gazprom Arena can hold up to 68,000 people was set to host the premier club competition ,but had the event stripped away after UEFA held an emergency meeting on Thursday.
Russian president Vladimir Putin ordered the full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Thursday with troops attacking the country from the north, east and south of the region forcing UEFA to act.
Champions League final will be moved from St Petersburg to Paris, as @RobHarris reports. 🏆🇫🇷 #UCL pic.twitter.com/h0Vb3Ko7cG
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) February 25, 2022
According to sources Sportsmail reported on Thursday that West were eager to host the event in the Olympic Stadium in London.
But now the French stadium will host the event in May
A statement on UEFA's website read
The UEFA Executive Committee decided to relocate the final of the 2021/22 UEFA Men’s Champions League from Saint Petersburg to Stade de France in Saint-Denis. The game will be played as initially scheduled on Saturday 28 May at 21:00 CET.
"UEFA wishes to express its thanks and appreciation to French Republic President Emmanuel Macron for his personal support and commitment to have European club football’s most prestigious game moved to France at a time of unparalleled crisis.
"Together with the French government, UEFA will fully support multi-stakeholder efforts to ensure the provision of rescue for football players and their families in Ukraine who face dire human suffering, destruction and displacement."≈
The organizers have also asked for both Russian and Ukrainian clubs to play all fixtures in neutral venues until further notice.
"At today’s meeting, the UEFA Executive Committee also decided that Russian and Ukrainian clubs and national teams competing in UEFA competitions will be required to play their home matches at neutral venues until further notice."
BREAKING: UEFA statement confirms Stade de France as Champions League final venue. Also Russian club teams and the national side ordered to play home games at neutral venues. @talkSPORT pic.twitter.com/Y0Uv0BropN
— Alex Crook ⚽️🎙🇺🇦 (@alex_crook) February 25, 2022
