The 2026 Finalissima, scheduled to be played between Argentina and Spain, has been cancelled. The match was originally set to take place on March 27 at Lusail Stadium in Doha, Qatar. However, the ongoing conflict involving Iran, US and Israel has forced the organisers to call off the highly anticipated clash.
"It is a source of great disappointment to UEFA and the organisers that circumstances and timing have denied the teams of the chance to compete for this prestigious prize in Qatar," UEFA said in a statement.
Finalissima is a match played between the continental champions of South America and Europe.
The organizers, UEFA and CONMEBOL, tried to come up with an alternative venue and date, to make the match happen, but to no avail. UEFA said that, Argentina, the reigning Copa American champions, have rejected the proposal of the alternative venue.
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"The first option was to stage the match at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid on the original date with a 50:50 split of supporters in the stadium. This would have provided a world class setting, befitting of such a prestigious event, but Argentina refused," UEFA added.
There was also a plan to hold Finalissima as a two-leg tie with one leg happening in at the Santiago Bernabeu and the other in Buenos Aires, but this idea was also rejected.
"The second was to stage the Finalissima over two legs - one at the Santiago Bernabeu on 27 March and the other in Buenos Aires during an international window before UEFA EURO and Copa America 2028, again offering a supporter split of 50:50 for the match in Madrid. This option was also rejected," UEFA said.
There was also a proposal to play the match at a neutral venue, but Argentina was not convinced.
"Argentina made a counter suggestion to play the game after the World Cup but, as Spain has no available dates, that option had to be ruled out. Finally, and contrary to the original agreed plan that the match would take place on 27 March, Argentina declared its availability to play exclusively on 31 March, a date which proved to be unworkable," UEFA said.
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