UEFA names Germany as Euro 2024 host

Germany on Thursday won the race to host the 2024 European Championship as UEFA backed a bid seen as safer than the rival Turkish proposal .
UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin announced the winner following a campaign that saw politics and concerns over human rights in Turkey play a central role .

“ I ’ d like to thank the UEFA Executive for their incredible confidence and I feel the responsibility — we will do our utmost to live up to expectations , ” said German Football Association ( DFB ) president Reinhard Grindel after the announcement .

“ We want to put on a huge football festival and show the world how hospitable we are , ” said ex – Germany captain Philipp Lahm , who will head the organising committee.

UEFA considered that the German bid already had everything in place to host a successful event — from stadiums to infrastructure and hotels .

European football ’ s governing body has also said it wants to make as much money as possible from the 2024 tournament and Germany was considered the better financial bet .

The win also offers a boost to German football after a disastrous 2018 World Cup, when the country failed to qualify for the last 16 — after winning the tournament in 2014 .

German foreign minister Heiko Maas said the 2024 tournament “ will be an opportunity to show what we stand for in Germany : openness to the world and tolerance , freedom and respect .

“ Together , we have to make the European Championship a tournament for all Europeans , ” he added in a statement.

Turkey meanwhile had been desperate to host its first ever major sporting event but its bid was weakened by concerns over its faltering economy , lacking transport network and , perhaps most importantly , human rights .

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan loomed large over the campaign and Thursday ’ s defeat may be seen in part as a personal rebuke .
His government’ s unprecedented crackdown , including thousands of arrests , following a failed 2016 coup has raised worldwide concern .

That unease was shared by UEFA , which noted in its evaluation report that the Turkish bid ’ s “ lack of action plan in the area of human rights is a matter of concern . ”

( AFP )

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