VZCZCXRO8288
RR RUEHDBU RUEHIK RUEHLN RUEHPOD RUEHSK RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHKV #0940/01 1531202
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 021202Z JUN 09
FM AMEMBASSY KYIV
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7889
INFO RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE
RUEHZG/NATO EU COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KYIV 000940 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/UMB, EUR/NCE, EUR/ERA, EB/CIP, 
USDOC FOR 4231/ITA/OEENIS/NISD/CLUCYK 
 
E.O.:  12958:  N/A 
TAGS: ECON EFIN ECPS BEXP EINT UP
 
SUBJECT:  EURO 2012: SOCCER ORGANIZER SHOWS UKRAINE THE YELLOW CARD 
 
Summary 
------- 
 
¶1. (SBU) Ukraine is in danger of losing the prestigious 2012 
European soccer championships, which it is to co-host with Poland. 
Games were to be played in four Ukrainian cities, but the UEFA, 
Europe's ruling soccer body, has announced that only Kyiv is on 
track to be a host, and that its role could be reduced if it does 
not meet key planning deadlines by November.  Other Ukrainian cities 
will be struck entirely in November if they fail to make progress 
preparing the necessary infrastructure to handle the large inflow of 
visitors that are expected for the month-long spectacle.  Planning 
for the event has fallen victim to a lack of organization, weak 
political leadership, and a dearth of financing in the wake of the 
economic crisis.  Losing the games would deny Ukraine an opportunity 
to showcase itself to Europe, and further damage the country's 
already tattered image across Europe.  End summary. 
 
Ukraine's Chance To Showcase Itself to Europe 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (U) In April 2007 the Union of European Football Associations 
(UEFA) awarded the European 2012 soccer championships to Ukraine and 
Poland.  The nearly month-long spectacle, featuring the 16 best 
national teams from throughout Europe, is the third most popular 
sporting event in Europe after the summer Olympics and the soccer 
World Cup.  It is expected to attract over a million visitors, and 
hundreds of millions of television viewers in Europe.  Eight cities 
- four in each country - were scheduled to host games, and Kyiv was 
to host the final. 
 
¶3. (SBU) In Ukraine, billions of dollars of investments are 
necessary to modernize stadiums and key infrastructure such as 
airports and roads and to increase hotel space and other services 
for tourists.  To date, upgrades at several airports and stadiums 
have begun.  Overall, however, relatively little progress has been 
made due to poor overall management of the project, political 
infighting between the President and Prime Minister, and dwindling 
sources of funding on account of the economic crisis. 
 
UEFA Shows Ukraine the Yellow Card 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (SBU) Until recently, the UEFA had been guarded in its public 
comments on the slow progress in Ukraine, although it reportedly 
articulated its concerns to PM Tymoshenko and to President 
Yushchenko during its many inspection trips to Ukraine over the past 
year.  In May, however, it finally admitted what many in Ukraine and 
abroad had already known -- that the country's preparations for the 
games were at best piecemeal and far behind schedule. 
 
¶5. (SBU) On May 13 UEFA's Executive Committee announced that, of all 
Ukrainian cities, it would only commit to allowing Kyiv to host 
games.  At the same time, it confirmed that four Polish cities were 
on schedule to serve as hosts.  UEFA even threatened to reduce 
Kiev's role in the games, saying that Kyiv would only get the final 
match if the city meets UEFA's conditions related to airport 
infrastructure, regional transportation, hotels, and Kiev's Olympic 
stadium by November 30.  Otherwise it will lose the final to Poland 
and only host one semi-final and several first round matches. 
 
¶6. (SBU) The UEFA also announced that three other potential 
Ukrainian host cities -- Donetsk, Lvov, and Kharkov -- would not 
host games at all if they failed to meet the UEFA criteria by the 
end of November.  It also dropped two cities -- Dnepropetrovsk and 
Odessa - that had previously been in the running.  The decision 
could mean that, should Ukraine fail to fulfill UEFA's expectations, 
the country would only play a minor role in the games.  The UEFA did 
not say what would happen if Kyiv and the other cities fail to meet 
its expectations, yet it is widely assumed that all the games 
originally foreseen for Ukraine will be held in Poland. 
 
¶7. (SBU) Prior to the vote, Yushchenko and PM Tymoshenko assured the 
UEFA in a joint letter that Ukraine would fulfill the commitments it 
made when it received the nod to host the games in 2007.  The letter 
does not appear to have swayed the UEFA and its director, former 
French soccer star Michel Platini, who had regularly called on both 
Yushchenko and Tymoshenko during previous inspection visits to 
Ukraine. 
 
¶8. (SBU) According to press reports, the UEFA has now given all four 
Ukrainian cities checklists of what needs to be done by November 30. 
 In his comments to the press after the May 13 announcement, Platini 
spoke of "numerous infrastructure issues that urgently need to be 
resolved."  The UEFA reportedly also informed Ukraine's organizers 
that immigration procedures needed streamlining during the games, 
 
KYIV 00000940  002 OF 002 
 
 
and expressed concerns about plans for sky-high hotel prices for 
rooms during the championship. 
 
¶9. (SBU) Following the UEFA announcement, Yushchenko, Tymoshenko and 
other leading government officials all expressed confidence that 
Ukraine would meet the November 30 deadline, yet failed to announce 
any significant revisions to the existing planning.  Financing both 
public infrastructure projects and hotel construction will pose a 
significant challenge for the country, as the economic crisis has 
dried up sources of both domestic and international funding.  The 
2009 budget earmarked practically nothing for infrastructure 
investment, and investment in real estate projects has nearly 
stopped. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶10.  (SBU)  A project on the scale of Euro 2012 requires long term 
administrative planning and coordination, strong political 
leadership and significant financing, all of which are in short 
supply in Ukraine at the moment.  Progress has been made on some 
airport and stadium construction, and most commentators agree that 
Ukraine still has a chance to meet the UEFA's expectations if it 
acts quickly and with determination.  Since the May 13 announcement, 
however, a new sense of urgency with regard to Euro 2012 is not 
palatable in Ukraine, and the country is in danger of losing a 
significant opportunity to showcase itself to Europe and to attract 
investment at a time when the country desperately needs it. 
 
PETTIT