• Uefa president wants to hold Euros across the continent
• Fans could travel on low-cost airlines, says Michel Platini
Michel Platini says the 2020 Euros could be hosted "by 12 or 13 cities" across the continent rather than one or two nations in what would be a radical change for the world's second biggest tournament.
Uefa's president claimed the idea as his own in Kiev on Saturday with the plan now to be discussed by the Uefa executive committee, who are due to make a final decision by January next year. Turkey had been considered favourites to host the event in eight years' time, although their bid has been complicated by Istanbul's efforts to stage the Olympic Games in the same year. Platini described their position as "ambiguous".
The financial demands on future hosts will increase with the format to rise from 16 to 24 teams from the finals in France in 2016, though Platini, when asked about potential costs to supporters if the tournament became pan-European, raised eyebrows when he asserted that "there are low-cost airlines".
"It is just an idea I came up with a while ago," he stressed. "It would be to have the European Championship not in one country, but all over Europe. The majority of the executive committee believe it's a good idea, and they spoke to the administration and said we should work on this idea, so we will meet with all the national federations in December.
"The tournament could either be in one country with 12 stadiums, or one stadium in 12 or 13 cities, with each venue getting four games. We have talked about 12 or 13 host cities because it could be a tournament of 24 or 32 nations. In these days of cheap air travel, anything is possible. It is easier to go from London to Paris or Berlin than Cardiff to Gdansk. We will discuss it very seriously – it's an idea I feel really passionate about, and it would be a lot easier from a financial perspective. It is not easy to build airports and 10 stadiums in a country. This would be an easier arrangement, especially when we are in the middle of an economic crisis. But it is just an idea."
Platini remains opposed to introduction of goal-line technology, however, with the Uefa general secretary, Gianni Infantino, expressing hope that the International Football Association Board (IFAB) would postpone Thursday's anticipated decision to authorise its introduction.
"I am not just wholly against goal-line technology," Platini said. "I am against technology itself because then it is going to invade every area of football."
The IFAB is expected to endorse two systems on Thursday – the Hawk-Eye and GoalRef systems – which have passed stringent tests to the satisfaction of the Board. Each is required to send an immediate message to a watch worn by the referee within one second of the ball crossing the line. Any amendment to the law needs at least six of the eight members of IFAB to vote in favour, which is widely expected will be the case in Zurich. Read More
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