Uefa calls meeting to move Champions League final from Russia
European football’s governing body Uefa has called an extraordinary meeting for tomorrow morning when it is expected to strip Russia of the Champions League final.
St Petersburg had been due to stage the biggest game in club football on 28 May but Russia’s invasion of Ukraine this week has seen pressure on Uefa to move its annual showpiece.
Uefa said: “Following the evolution of the situation between Russia and Ukraine in the last 24 hours, the Uefa president has decided to call an extraordinary meeting of the executive committee for Friday 25 February at 10:00 CET, in order to evaluate the situation and take all necessary decisions.
“Further communication will be made after the meeting of the Uefa executive committee.”
It follows calls, including from the British government, to find a new venue for this season’s Champions League final.
Uefa initially said it had no plans to move the fixture when Russia began its invasion on Wednesday.
It is also under pressure to review its relationship with Russian state-owned energy company Gazprom, a long-standing commercial partner.
Gazprom is also a title sponsor of the stadium in St Petersburg that was set to host the Champions League final.
Uefa has been forced to move the last two editions of the match for reasons related to the Covid-19 pandemic.
In 2019 the governing body postponed the Champions League final and moved it from Istanbul to Lisbon, where it held a condensed final three rounds of the competition.
Last year the match was relocated from Istanbul to Porto at two weeks’ notice due to travel restrictions.