“There are all prerequisites for victory”: what they said about applying for a match for the UEFA Super Cup in Kazan

“We will actively use the World Cup legacy”

Kazan became a contender for the organization of a match for the UEFA Super Cup in 2022 or 2023, in which the winners of the Champions League and the Europa League meet. On Monday, October 28, the Ministry of Sports of the Republic of Tatarstan filed a corresponding application with the RFU.

“The main object of the match for the Super Bowl will be Kazan Arena, which meets all the necessary requirements. The application book also indicates the entire infrastructure of the city, entrance gates, logistics features and various kinds of guarantees. Moreover, of course, we are talking here about the colossal experience that Kazan has in terms of holding large-scale sporting events. The same applies to the infrastructure of the city, which is ready for such events, ”said Vladimir Leonov, head of the region’s Ministry of Sports.

Later, a message appeared on the official website of the RFU on the completion of work on the application of Kazan. The head of the football union, Alexander Dyukov, explained the support of the city’s initiative, in particular, the desire to make maximum use of the infrastructure built for the 2018 World Cup.

“As part of the football development strategy until 2030, the RFU is working to ensure that major Russian tournaments and matches are held in Russian cities as often as possible. We will actively use the experience and legacy of a successful World Cup, ”cites the official website of the RFU.

“Kazan is a hospitable and modern city, ready to organize a great football event at the highest level, thanks to many years of sports traditions and the city’s love of football and sports, as well as developed infrastructure,” Dyukov emphasized.

We add that the decision to support the candidacy of Kazan was made at the Bureau of the Executive Committee of the RFU on July 3. And in mid-August, Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov met with UEFA President Alexander Cheferin in Istanbul and discussed this initiative with him. In October, the mayor of Kazan, Ilsur Metshin, spoke about work in this direction.

“We are now working with our president to bring the UEFA Super Cup to Kazan in 2023. The whole world, the whole business elite is going to this game. And you can’t imagine any other event where politicians and all who revolve around football will meet. We, God forbid, when we win, we will designate the arrival of large companies, sponsors that have billions of dollars by 2023, ”Echo of Moscow quoted Metshin as saying.

The full list of candidates for the Super Bowl matches in 2022 and 2023 is not yet known. It will be published after UEFA receives the necessary documents from all applicants. However, earlier it was reported that Minsk, Tirana and Helsinki intend to compete with Kazan. It is expected that the results will be summed up in the spring of 2020.

However, the honorary president of the RFU, Vyacheslav Koloskov, commenting on Kazan’s nomination, called the city’s good chances of a final victory bid.

“Kazan is a globally recognized city. A huge number of complex events were held there: the World Cup, the World Aquatics Championship in 2015, the Universiade in 2019, and recently hosted the World Skills festival. Something global and serious, with worldwide recognition, is constantly happening there. Kazan Arena is a very attractive stadium. Now everything will depend on the effective work of the application committee, I know this from my own experience. The city has tremendous experience and a positive response to the high level of competition. Kazan has good chances to win, there are all prerequisites for this, ”TASS quoted Koloskov as saying.

At the same time, the functionary emphasized that if there was a member from Russia in the UEFA executive committee, the probability of success of the Kazan application would be even higher.

“I consider his absence a big gap. The presence of such a person would significantly increase the chances of winning. In 2021 there will be regular elections to the executive committee, so it would be nice to introduce a candidate from the RFU there, ”Koloskov added.

In turn, the former coach of Kazan “Rubin” Rinat Bilyaletdinov expressed confidence that the city will cope with such a crucial meeting.

“There is no doubt, Kazan will hold the Super Bowl at the highest level. It is honorable for the city and the republic. The stadium is modern, all the rooms under the stands are magnificent, everything corresponds to the highest category. Kazan has real chances to get the Super Bowl. One Universiade is worth it, everyone has also become accustomed to high standards at the World Aquatics Championships, air races, ”RIA Novosti quoted him as saying.

However, Bilyaletdinov complained about the generally not very high popularity of football in the city. “The match for the Super Bowl may attract spectator interest in Rubin, but this will be a short-term effect. Nevertheless, Kazan is more of a hockey city, ”he added.

On the way of St. Petersburg

If Kazan’s bid is successful in Russia, another decisive European Cup match may take place in the near future. It is already known that in 2021 St. Petersburg will host the Champions League final. The decision was made at the UEFA Executive Committee in Ljubljana. And Dyukov said that this final would be the best in history.

“We are very pleased that St. Petersburg received the right to host the main match of the most prestigious international club tournament - the Champions League final. We would like to thank the UEFA Executive Committee, which made such a choice. In recent years, Russia has become one of the centers of the football world, we are ready to actively use our infrastructure for the development of this sport. Gazprom Arena has the unique experience of organizing events of the highest level. St. Petersburg is a hospitable and beautiful city in which guests are loved and appreciated. I’m sure that the Champions League final will be the best in history and will be remembered by the fans and residents of the city! ”Dyukova quoted the official website of the RFU.

It should be noted that Gazprom Arena has already managed to host a number of crucial matches in a short period of operation. In 2017, there were four meetings of the Confederations Cup, including the tournament finals, and a year later, seven games of the World Cup, including the semi-final and the match for third place.

Already in 2020, the stadium in St. Petersburg will host the matches of the European Championship. There will be four meetings of the group stage of the tournament and one quarter-final. It is in the city on the Neva that the Russian team will take on rivals, which has already won a ticket to the final stage.