ROME (AP) — The Sardinian city of Cagliari edged out Sicilian capital Palermo on the Italian soccer federation’s list of 10 proposed host cities for the 2032 European Championship.
The federation submitted its formal dossier to UEFA on Wednesday with Milan, Turin, Verona, Genoa, Bologna, Florence, Rome, Naples, Bari and Cagliari as the proposed host cities.
Palermo was listed as an alternate host, with the federation preferring to include only one island city to make logistics easier.
UEFA will decide the 2032 host on Oct. 10, with Turkey the only other candidate.
Italy won the Euros as host in 1968 and also organized the 1980 edition won by West Germany — plus four games of Euro 2020.
The Azzurri are the reigning European champion after winning Euro 2020 for their second continental title.
The last major soccer tournament held entirely in Italy was the 1990 World Cup and many of the country’s stadiums have not been renovated for more than three decades.
UEFA will also decide the host for the 2028 Euros in October.
There is a joint U.K.-Ireland bid for 2028, while Turkey is bidding for either 2028 or 2032, with Italy focused solely on 2032.
Russia had previously announced a declaration of interest for 2028 or 2032 but has since been removed from the process because of the war in Ukraine.
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