Following intense discussions between UEFA and the Qatari authorities, it has been announced that the final between Euro 2024 winners Spain and 2024 CONMEBOL Copa America winners Argentina will not be able to be held in Qatar on 27 March, as expected due to the current political situation in the region.
It is with great regret for UEFA and the organizers that circumstances and timing have deprived teams of the opportunity to compete for this prestigious trophy in Qatar, which has repeatedly demonstrated its ability to host prestigious international events in its state-of-the-art facilities.
UEFA would like to express its deep gratitude to the organizing committee and the relevant authorities in Qatar for their efforts in organizing the match, and to express its confidence that peace will soon return to the region.
Finalissima has been introduced as part of a close collaboration between UEFA and CONMEBOL, bringing together European and South American champions in a celebration of international football at the highest level. Current world champions Argentina won the inaugural tournament in 2022 with a 3-0 victory over Italy at London’s Wembley Stadium.
Despite the firm determination to save this important match, and the understandable difficulties of changing such an important match at short notice, UEFA explored other viable alternatives, none of which were ultimately accepted by the Argentine Football Association. The first option was to hold the match at Madrid’s Santiago Bernabéu Stadium on the original date, with fans in the stadium divided by 50%. This was supposed to provide a world-class environment befitting such a prestigious event, but Argentina refused. The second was to have the Finalissima spread over two matches. The first match was to be played at the Santiago Bernabéu on March 27, the second in Buenos Aires in the international window before Euro 2028 and the Copa America, and again with 50% fan attendance for the match in Madrid. This option was also rejected. Ultimately, UEFA asked Argentina to commit to either holding the match as scheduled on March 27, 2025, announced as December 18, 2025, or on an alternative date, March 30, if a neutral venue could be found in Europe. This proposal was also rejected. Argentina offered an alternative proposal to play the match after the World Cup, but this option had to be ruled out as Spain had no free dates. Finally, contrary to the originally agreed plan for the match to take place on 27 March, Argentina declared it possible to play the match only on 31 March, which proved unfeasible. As a result, very unfortunately for UEFA, this Finalissima has been cancelled. UEFA would like to express its sincere gratitude to Real Madrid CF, the Organizing Committee and the Qatari authorities for their support and cooperation in trying to organize this match. In the case of Real Madrid, their efforts were made in a very short period of time. We would also like to thank the Spanish Football Federation for its flexibility in responding to all the options proposed throughout the process.
Argentina sabotages Finalissima for fear of losing
According to a person close to the negotiations, Argentina’s coach refused to play for fear of repeating the 6-1 defeat he suffered just before the World Cup in Russia, which affected the tournament. it’s all a matter of superstition
Messi also prioritized his own commitments and prevented the match from being held.
Argentina wanted to claim full price
The Argentine Football Federation (FA) demanded full payment for the rescheduled match, as if the match still being held in Qatar had sold 80,000 tickets and large sums of money had already been invested in sponsorship for the home country, all of which was lost.
Spain, in contrast, was flexible and accepted all proposed changes without issue. In this era of war, the game of soccer unites the world, and we learn that there are things more important than winning, losing, or money.
