Opinions & Interviews

UEFA president announces new stage in cooperation with Belarus

MINSK, 19 September (BelTA) - The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and the Belarusian Football Federation are launching a new stage in bilateral cooperation, UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin said as he met with Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko on 19 September, BelTA has learned.

“The Belarusian Football Federation and UEFA have been cooperating successfully. Any successful cooperation can be further improved. We have good professional relations with the federation. We are also good friends, which is very important. I am happy to see that sport receives such support in Belarus. I am especially happy for football, of course. Tomorrow we are launching a new stage in our cooperation,” Aleksander Ceferin said.

In his words, UEFA has been long supporting Belarus, assisting with infrastructure development and the acquisition of necessary sport equipment and gear. “We plan to provide assistance in training coaches. The important thing is that we have the minister’s [Belarus sport and tourism minister’s] support and understanding. There is progress in football, although it is very slow. It is necessary to start from the very small age and gradually develop. It is impossible to become a champion over night,” the UEFA president said.

Slovenian football administrator Aleksander Ceferin was elected UEFA president in September 2016, succeeding France’s Michel Platini. Aleksander Ceferin was re-elected for a four-year term in 2019. One of the main points on his program is active investment in grassroots and women’s football.

Founded in 1954, UEFA is the governing body of European football and one of the six confederations of the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). UEFA is an umbrella organization for 55 national associations. The organization is headquartered in Nyon, Switzerland.

The Belarusian Football Federation joined the organization in 1993.

In 2019, Minsk played host for the UEFA Grassroots Conference for the first time. Taking part in the event were about 200 specialists from 55 European countries.

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