Nyon –
Italy and Argentina will stage the Finalissima duel this year. The venue has been chosen, namely Wembley Stadium on July 1st.
Italy and Argentina won their respective regional titles last year. Argentina won the 2021 Copa America by silencing Brazil in the final which took place at the Maracana on 10 July.
A day later, it was Gli Azzurri’s turn to win Euro 2020 via a dramatic 3-2 penalty shootout, after only playing 1-1 for 120 minutes.
After that, there was a discourse to bring the two together as well as to continue the good relations between the two confederations where Argentina and Italy are sheltered, namely UEFA and CONMEBOL.
The reason is, a similar match had occurred in 1993 when Denmark, who was then European champion in 1992, met Argentina, who had just won the Copa America. Argentina then won on penalties at the Artemio Franchi, Florence, Italy.
After that, the European champions and the Copa America champions have never met. At best only at club level, namely the Intercontinental Cup when the Champions League winners meet the Copa Libertadores champions.
After waiting almost three decades, UEFA and CONMEBOL have finally set July 1 as the duel Italy vs. Argentina. Wembley Stadium in London, England was chosen as the venue for the match which was touted as the ‘Finalissima’.
“This will give fans the opportunity to see the two best champions in the world meet in the CONMEBOL-UEFA Cup of Champions match,” UEFA said in a statement.
“After the last time it was held 29 years ago, this legendary duel was reborn from the long-standing partnership between UEFA and CONMEBOL. It has also become a catalyst for the development of football globally which unites many countries, continents and cultures. And shows fans all over the world. the world that football can be comforting in difficult times like this.”
(mrp/pur)
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