VIENNA, June 13: UEFA has no contingency plan for the 2012 European Championship if co-hosts Poland and Ukraine are unable to meet construction deadlines.

Ukrainian Football Federation vice president Boris Voskresensky told Russian newspaper Sport Express that the company renovating the 80,000-seat Kiev Olympic stadium which will host the final is “incapable” of finishing the job on time due to a lack of necessary materials and resources.

UEFA spokesman William Gaillard said on Thursday that president Michel Platini will lead a delegation after Euro 2008 and visit the co-hosts from July 1 to gauge the organizational progress.

“At this stage, we are not discussing any Plan ‘B’ in terms of new countries,” Gaillard said. “There are alternative scenarios, there are proposed different cities within Poland and Ukraine — like Krakow and Odessa — which could host matches.

UEFA had already given Poland and Ukraine an ultimatum in January to work faster.

“In January, we gave them four to six months to fix things and give us a progress report,” Gaillard said. “At this point we are not more concerned than we were in January, but at the same time we are not less concerned.

Scotland has reportedly told UEFA it could step in and host the tournament.—AP

Opinion

Editorial

Sustainable path?
Updated 13 Jun, 2026

Sustainable path?

The FY27 budget is the first clear signal that the government is ready to transition from stabilisation to growth.
Prioritising education
13 Jun, 2026

Prioritising education

THOUGH the improvement in the country’s literacy rate may be slight, as highlighted by the Economic Survey, it ...
Poverty’s rise
13 Jun, 2026

Poverty’s rise

AS attention turns to the government’s plans for the coming fiscal year, one set of figures deserves particular...
A difficult story
Updated 12 Jun, 2026

A difficult story

Unless productivity becomes the dominant target of economic policy, Pakistan will continue to oscillate between crises and fragile recovery.
Rough waters
12 Jun, 2026

Rough waters

AMONGST the key potential triggers for fresh conflict in South Asia is water. The Indian state is behaving in an...
Politicised football
12 Jun, 2026

Politicised football

ALMOST three-and-half years since Lionel Messi led Argentina to FIFA World Cup glory, the latest edition of...