UEFA chief Ceferin warns Italy could lose Euro 2032 without stadium improvements

UEFA chief Aleksander Ceferin warned that Italy risks not co-hosting the 2032 European Championship with Turkey due to the condition of the country’s stadiums, which he called «among the worst in Europe».

«Euro 2032 is planned and will take place, there is no doubt about that. I just hope that the infrastructure (in Italy) will be ready. If not, the tournament will not be held in Italy,» Ceferin said in an interview with the Gazetta dello Sport published on Thursday.

“Maybe Italian politicians should ask themselves why the football infrastructure is among the worst in Europe.”

Ceferin added that Italian football’s biggest problem was «the relationship between football authorities and politics».

In October, Italy must name the five stadiums that will host matches at Euro 2032, with eleven cities currently candidates: Rome, Florence, Bologna, Milan, Genoa, Bari, Naples, Turin, Cagliari and Palermo.

READ | Italy’s football infrastructure is terrible, says UEFA’s Aleksander Ceferin

Italy can present new stadiums or stadiums in need of redevelopment as long as the works start in March 2027.

Only one stadium, Juventus’ Allianz Stadium in Turin, is fully ready to host matches during the international summer tournament.

Inter Milan and AC Milan recently purchased the San Siro from the City of Milan and hope to complete a new 71,500-capacity arena on the same site as the current stadium by 2031.

However, the sale of the land is under investigation for alleged bid manipulation by the public prosecutor’s office in Italy’s economic capital.

Roma was given the green light by local authorities in Rome to build a new stadium in the east of the Eternal City, while Fiorentina’s Stadio Artemio Franchi is being redeveloped.

Last month, the city of Naples presented a renovation project for the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, where Serie A champions Napoli play their matches Os6xjjz.

The Maradona project, which includes the abolition of the athletics track along the pitch, has a budget of 200 million euros ($230 million) and was presented by Mayor Gaetano Manfredi as something that must be done “no matter 2032”.

Published on April 2, 2026