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Preparations for the organization of the Under 21 European Football Championship in Bucharest and Cluj-Napoca are on schedule, according to the UEFA representatives who paid a working visit to Romania, informs the official website of the Romanian Federation Football (FRF).
"Representatives of UEFA paid a working visit to Bucharest and Cluj-Napoca to check the current status of the preparations for the European Under 21 Championship. The conclusion was that all the preparations are on schedule," says a press release of the FRF.
For 3 days, several UEFA officials inspected the stadiums where the summer European tournament will take place and took inventory of the organizational management procedures.
The Steaua and Giulesti stadiums in Bucharest and Arena Cluj and the "Dr. Constantin Radulescu" Stadium in Cluj-Napoca were visited. UEFA representatives checked the inflow and outflow of the public, the condition of the infrastructure (lawn and facilities for the teams), as well as the mobility and security plans for the event.
At the same time, the training and accommodation conditions for the participating teams were controlled. UEFA validated the preparations of the Local Organizing Structure of the tournament and found that the established schedule is respected. It was the fourth UEFA working visit and the last one before the UEFA Under 21 European Championship, which will start on June 21.
The Local Organizing Structure of the tournament is made up of specialists from the FRF, who were also involved in the organization of the EURO 2020 in Bucharest and who, in the meantime, have also benefited from academic training and UEFA training for the organization of major sporting events, according to the representatives of the Federation.
The final tournament will take place between June 21 and July 8, 2023.
The matches in our country will take place at the Steaua and Rapid-Giulesti stadiums in Bucharest, Group B, respectively at Cluj Arena and ''Dr. Constantin Radulescu'' stadium in Cluj-Napoca, Group D. Romania will also host two quarter-finals (Rapid-Giulesti and Cluj Arena) and a semifinal (Steaua), a total of 15 matches.
The matches in the other two groups will take place in Georgia, in Tbilisi (A), respectively Batumi and Kutaisi (C), two quarter-finals will be hosted by Tbilisi and Kutaisi, and a semi-final and the final will take place in Batumi.
Romania and Georgia automatically qualified for the final tournament. Romania will host the opening match, and Georgia will host the final.
Romania is the first country to host the final tournament for the second time, after the 1998 edition.
The first three placed in next year's final tournament will qualify for the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024. Only three positions are reserved for Europe because France, the host country, is already qualified, ex officio. If France is on the podium, the next ranked team from EURO U21 will go.
Germany is the title holder in this age category.
Group composition:
Group A (Tbilisi): Georgia, Portugal, Belgium, Netherlands;
Group B (Bucharest): Romania, Spain, Ukraine, Croatia;
Group C (Batumi, Kutaisi): Czech Republic, England, Germany, Israel;
Group D (Cluj-Napoca): Norway, Switzerland, France, Italy.
AGERPRES
