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Italian newspaper La Repubblica reported over the weekend that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has offered 8 million euros to the Italian Football Federation if Hungary hosts the next Italian Super Cup (Supercoppa Italiana), according to Index, a Hungarian news site, which contacted the Prime Minister’s Office in this regard.
According to the Italian newspaper, a few weeks ago, the Hungarian Prime Minister proposed the idea of Budapest hosting the Italian Super Cup, and the Italian Football Federation is reportedly considering the offer.
The out-of-town venue would not be new, with Saudi Arabia hosting the 2018 and 2019 Super Cups, and the country is also planning to host the upcoming match on January 18, 2023. However, according to La Repubblica, this could easily change and the federation could decide to host the match in Hungary instead.
Even though the original article mentioned Budapest as a possible venue, several media outlets reported that the Hungarian Prime Minister offered to host the match at the Pancho Aréna in Felcsút, close to his home. However, this might be an error, since the Pancho Aréna can only accommodate 3,500 people. The Hungarian offer probably stands for the Puskas Aréna in Budapest which can host more than 67,000 fans.
Budapest would be a good alternative, if only because Hungary is significantly closer to Italy than Saudi Arabia.
So the fact that teams and fans would have to travel less to the Hungarian capital is not a negligible factor. The Italian Super Cup will be played between Inter Milan and AC Milan, and according to media reports, both teams would prefer Hungary as the venue.
La Repubblica reports that the decision about the football match could be heavily influenced by the result of the Italian elections on Sunday.
The Italian coalition of right-wing parties won the election by a large margin, as a result of which Giorgia Meloni, the leader of the Brothers of Italy (FdI) party and an ally of Viktor Orban, is likely to become the next Italian prime minister.
Meanwhile, Hungary and Italy will play against each other today in Puskás Aréna in the Nations League. The teams are in competition for first place within their group, which is now led by Hungary after defeating Germany on Friday.
Featured photo via MTI/Illyés Tibor