The organizers of the women’s European Championship 2022 defend themselves against criticism of the Icelandic national player Sara Björk Gunnarsdottir because the venues are too small.
The midfielder had complained on the podcast “Their Pitch” that Iceland had to play two European Championship games at Manchester City Academy Stadium. Gunnarsdottir said it was “disrespectful” that her team had to play on a “training ground”.
The stadium with 4,700 seats is the smallest venue at the European Championships, but the organizers made it clear that it is not a training ground. “It is the official home stadium of Manchester City women’s football club,” a BBC Sport spokesman said. “It has already been used for women’s Champions League matches and will provide a great atmosphere worthy of a women’s championship.”
Gunnarsdottir, on the other hand, spoke of a “step backwards” and called it “embarrassing” that the stadium was chosen for the European Championship. “Look at women’s football these days, they fill the stadiums,” said the Lyon pro. “You can see it in Barcelona vs Madrid, 95,000 people watched the game. They (Euro makers) are not prepared to sell more than 4,000 tickets for it.”
According to BBC information, eight games of the Euro, which takes place in England from July 6th to 31st, are already sold out. Among them is the opening match between hosts England and Austria, to be played at Manchester’s Old Trafford. The traditional home of Manchester United holds almost 75,000 spectators.