"Then Ukraine will be united with Russia?" UEFA has officially made an unclear decision on the 2027 European Youth Championship

The UEFA Executive Committee has appointed Albania and Serbia to host the final tournament of the 2027 U-21 European Youth Football Championship. These countries submitted a single joint application and received the right to host the competition.

The tournament with the participation of 16 teams will be held at eight stadiums: four in each country. In Albania, Tirana, Shkodër, Elbasan and Rogozhina will host the matches, and in Serbia, Novi Sad, Loznica, Liskovac and Zaječar will host the matches. The opening round will take place in Serbia, and the final in Albania.

Both countries will automatically qualify for the finals, while the remaining 14 places will be played in the 2026-2027 qualifying cycle.

This is the first time that the Youth Euro will be held in Albania or Serbia. Previously, Tirana hosted the 2022 Conference League final, and in 2024 Albania will organize the U-17 European Championship. Serbia already hosted this tournament in 2011, as well as the European Futsal Championship in 2016.

This decision came as a real shock to the fans, given the tense relations between the two countries.

In 2014, the first official match in Belgrade between Serbia and Albania ended in riots. The reason was a drone with the flag of "Greater Albania" that appeared over the stadium.

One of the Serbian players tore down the flag, after which a fight broke out between the players. Serbian fans burst onto the field, and one of them attacked an Albanian player with a stool.

In the end, Albania was awarded a 3-0 technical victory.

Now the teams will meet again, in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, in the same group. And in 2027, the two countries are to host a major youth tournament together, despite a long history of confrontation.

In the comments, fans can't believe what happened, suggesting that, based on UEFA's logic, the next joint World Cup should be hosted by Russia and Ukraine.

"So, in 2 years, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine will be only the second most disturbing union of two countries in the world," users write.

Are there many football fans provoking a new Balkan war and wondering what UEFA is "smoking"?

"A smart choice with no drawbacks or potential problems," mocks the UEFA account on social network X.

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