The Mayor of Bilbao says that UEFA is to compensate the city after it lost its right to host matches for Euro 2020.
Juan Mari Abuerto today tweeted to say that the city will receive €1.3million to cover the costs it had spent on preparations.
He also added that UEFA had agreed to grant the city the right to host a women's Champions League final and the Europa League final.
Bilbao, along with Dublin, were stripped of their host status earlier this year when neither city was able to commit to having fans present by UEFA's April deadline.
Four matches were slated to take place in the Spanish city.
Por un lado, recuperando la integridad de la inversión producida, 1,3 Millones de euros y, por otro, consiguiendo que #SanMames acoja una final de la @EuropaLeague de clubes y una final de la #Champions femenina de clubes en los próximos años.
— Juan Mari Aburto (@juanmariaburto) June 11, 2021
At that time, it prompted an angry response from the local organisers.
“Euro 2020 will not be played in Bilbao," they said at the time.
"But we are not going to allow them to play games with Bilbao and the Basque institutions.”
“We have not found a single reason, sporting, social or economic, and certainly not related to public health and measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, in any of the UEFA communications.
“The contract that unites us with Uefa and with the RFEF and the official communication of Uefa is already in the hands of the legal services of the so-called ‘Bilbao Committee’ for study and evaluation.”
“And so that the compensation of the amounts invested to date in organising the event, which amounts to more than €1.2 million, as well as the possible damages caused by said decision can be evaluated.”
Taoiseach Micheal Martin previously criticised UEFA for its approach to crowds at the championships.
It's not clear whether compensation will be issued to Ireland to cover any expenditure on preparing to host the championships.
"I thought UEFA were out of order, quite frankly, putting that condition on countries," the Fianna Fáil leader said.
"If you look at what is happening all over Europe in terms of the B117 and in terms of the high incidence in European member state countries, to be putting obligations on countries to force spectators in prematurely, in my view, was a wrong call by the footballing authorities and I never thought it was a realistic proposition if I'm honest."
