Germany picks key stadia to lead Euros 2024 bid submission

By Samindra Kunti

September 18 – The German FA (DFB) has confirmed the ten venues Germany plans on using for Euro 2024. The main venues will be Hertha Berlin’s Olympiastadion, Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena and Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion. 

Germany are considered the favorites to host the European Championship in 2024, with Turkey the only other bidder in the race. Previously UEFA, Europe’s governing body, announced that all bids must strictly comply with human rights rules, which may work against Turkey’s bid.

Amnesty International has called out Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan for his government crackdown on civil servants and civil society following an attempted coup in Turkey last July.

With Euro 2024 still seven years away, Germany has proposed ten state of the art venues to host Europe’s continental championship. Next to its three flagship stadiums the DFB also selected Fortuna Dusseldorf’s ESPRIT Arena, Stuttgart’s Mercedes-Benz Arena, Cologne’s RheinEnergieSTADION, Hamburg’s Volksparkstadion, Leipzig’s Red Bull Arena, Schalke’s VELTINS-Arena and the Commerzbank-Arena in Frankfurt.

Nürnberg (Max-Morlock-Stadion), Hannover (HDI Arena), Mönchengladbach (BORUSSIA-PARK) and Bremen (Weserstadion) all missed out as host cities.

On-site visits, applicable UEFA norms and Transparency International’s monitoring ensured a transparent and honest bidding process among the vying cities, according to the DFB.

“I would like to sincerely thank the representatives of all 14 cities and stadiums who have applied,” commented DFB president Reinhard Grindel (pictured). “We spoke with all applicants at the end. It was particularly important to personally thank the four venues, which could not be selected.”

“The DFB leadership did not make a policy decision for or against a location, but followed the recommendation of the bidding committee, which thoroughly examined all applications in a detailed, transparent and exemplary procedure,” continued Grindel. “We are grateful that Transparency International accompanied the selection process. I hope that the four unsuccessful applicants will continue to support our common goal of EURO 2024, and we will all contribute together to make a strong application for German football in the coming year.”

UEFA will choose a host in September 2018. The bid dossiers must be finalised and submitted to UEFA by next April.

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