BARCELONA, Spain (AP) – The Spanish soccer federation has offered Seville as an alternative host city for the European Championship if UEFA rules out using Bilbao as planned. The federation confirmed local media reports to The Associated Press on Friday that it has put forward Seville’s La Cartuja Stadium as an alternative to Bilbao’s San Mamés.
Last week, the federation announced that the current pandemic situation in Bilbao made it impossible for fans to be allowed into the matches based on the regulations established by health authorities in the northern Basque Country region. The federation told the AP that it would be up to regional authorities in southern Andalusia to decide whether fans could be allowed into Seville games.
Currently, there are no fans allowed into the league or national team matches anywhere in Spain.
A Basque Country region spokesman said on Friday that the local government has “not received any direct notification from UEFA” of a change of plans.
“If they changed their opinion, and we have to see if they do, then they would inform us. And if they did, they would have to give us an explanation,” regional official Bingen Zupiria said.
Other host cities for the tournament to be held around Europe between June 11 and July 11 have given assurances to UEFA that spectators will be allowed into stadiums.
A UEFA decision on Bilbao is expected soon.
Seville’s La Cartuja Stadium is a publicly owned stadium run by Andalusia’s regional government. The stadium, which has an athletic track around the field, can hold 60,000 fans. Seville’s topflight sides, Sevilla and Real Betis, each have their own stadiums in the same city.
La Cartuja Stadium is set to host a second Copa del Rey final this month when Barcelona plays Athletic Bilbao on Saturday. It also hosted the delayed 2020 cup final two weeks ago, when Real Sociedad beat Athletic Bilbao. No fans have been allowed to attend either final.
UEFA has used another stadium in Seville, Sevilla’s Sánchez Pizjuán, as a replacement venue after the home team was eliminated from the Champions League. It hosted both legs of the Chelsea-Porto quarterfinals because of travel restrictions between England and Portugal. Bilbao’s San Mamés Stadium is scheduled to host Spain’s Group E games against Sweden, Poland, and Slovakia and one round-of-16 match. The Basque Country region around Bilbao has been one of the hardest hit by the pandemic in Spain. On Thursday, the area reported 358 cases per 100,000 inhabitants over 14 days, compared to 225 cases per 100,000 in Seville’s Andalusia region. Above 200 cases per 100,000 is considered high risk by authorities.
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