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The UEFA Executive Committee today, September 26 met in Limassol, Cyprus and took the following decisions:
2024 UEFA Super Cup
The Executive Committee appointed the National Stadium in Warsaw, Poland, as hosts of the 2024 UEFA Super Cup to be played on 14 August.
Hosts for youth final tournaments
The UEFA Executive Committee appointed the hosts for several youth competition final tournaments as follows:
– UEFA European Women’s Under-17 Championship: Northern Ireland 2026; Finland 2027.
– UEFA European Under-17 Championship: Albania 2025; Estonia 2026; Latvia 2027.
– UEFA European Women’s Under-19 Championship: Bosnia-Herzegovina 2026; Hungary 2027.
– UEFA European Under-19 Championship: Wales 2026; Israel 2027.
Governance Framework for National Associations
The UEFA Executive Committee adopted a revised governance framework for its National Associations, a move aimed at enhancing governance standards and empowering its 55 members to champion good governance at the domestic level.
The new National Associations Governance Framework seeks to foster a more inclusive, resilient, and transparent environment for domestic football across Europe. It further embodies UEFA’s commitment to working closely with its members to ensure the continued growth of the beautiful game in a transparent, accountable and responsible manner for the benefit of all stakeholders.
The decision to embark on this journey is rooted in UEFA’s strategy “Together for the Future of Football 2019-2024” and follows extensive consultations and discussions held during the Convention on the Future of European Football in 2021 and 2022. Its implementation will be supported through a variety of channels, including the UEFA HatTrick VI programme.
The framework covers the broad spectrum of a national association’s activities and operations around five core themes, i.e. democracy, transparency, integrity, control mechanisms as well as policies and procedures.
UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin commented on the initiative, saying, “Today, UEFA takes another step towards enhancing football in Europe. The new National Associations Governance Framework will provide our members with comprehensive support in embracing UEFA’s values and principles. We aim to ensure that they are well-equipped to meet the challenges and opportunities of the future”.
The UEFA National Associations Governance Framework will be made publicly available in due course.
Re-admission of children’s teams from Russia
UEFA was the first sports body to react to the war in Ukraine and took decisive action in February 2022 – suspending all Russian teams from its competitions, removing events scheduled in Russia like the UEFA Champions League final in Saint Petersburg and the UEFA Super Cup in Kazan, and cancelling its sponsorship contract with Gazprom.
However, UEFA is also aware that children should not be punished for actions whose responsibility lies exclusively with adults and is firmly convinced that football should never give up sending messages of peace and hope. It is particularly aggrieving that, due to the enduring conflict, a generation of minors is deprived of its right to compete in international football. For these reasons, the UEFA Executive Committee has decided that Russian teams of minor players will be readmitted to its competitions in the course of this season. In this respect, the Executive Committee has asked the UEFA administration to propose a technical solution that would enable the reinstatement of the Russian U17 teams (both girls and boys) even when draws have already been held. All matches of the Russian teams shall be played without the country flag, anthem, national playing kit and not on the Russian territory.
At the same time, the Executive Committee reiterated its condemnation of Russia’s illegal war and confirmed that the suspension of all other teams of Russia (clubs and national teams) will remain in force until the end of the conflict in Ukraine.
UEFA President, Aleksander Čeferin said, “UEFA’s continuing suspension against Russian adult teams reflects its commitment to take a stand against violence and aggression. UEFA is determined that this position will continue until the war is over and peace restored. But by banning children from our competitions, we not only fail to recognise and uphold a fundamental right for their holistic development but we directly discriminate against them. By providing opportunities to play and compete with their peers from all over Europe, we are investing in what we hope will be a brighter and more capable future generation and a better tomorrow.”
48th Ordinary UEFA Congress re-located
The UEFA Executive Committee decided to relocate the 2024 UEFA Congress from Madrid to Paris on 8 February 2024. The 2024/25 UEFA Nations League group stage draw will also be moved to the French capital city on the same day.
Armand Duka appointed UEFA vice-president
Armand Duka of Albania was appointed as one of UEFA vice-presidents, in replacement of Luis Rubiales who resigned on 1September 10, 2023.
Football in Schools event
Earlier today, the UEFA Executive Committee attended a Football in Schools event – a critical component of UEFA’s broader grassroots football programme – reflecting the governing body’s unwavering dedication to nurturing the sport at all levels.
More than 90 boys and girls involved with the programme played alongside UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin and a group of footballing legends in Limassol. The event comes during UEFA Grassroots Week, which shines a light on players’, referees’ and coaches’ stories from within the amateur game.
Football in Schools’ impact over the past four years has been significant, with thousands of schools and millions of children benefiting from its activities. The extension of a €11 million funding until 2028 is expected to magnify this impact even further, creating a lasting legacy for European football.
Next meeting of the UEFA Executive Committee
The next meeting of the UEFA Executive Committee will take place on 10 October in Nyon, when the hosts for UEFA EURO 2028 and 2032 will be appointed.
