There are 25 countries competing for the grand prize of this edition, while the final night will be opened by Denmark. Austria, the current host country, will perform last on the stage of the “Wiener Stadthalle”.

Alis electrified the arena during the second semi-final, propelling ‘Nan’ to become one of the most-clicked and celebrated songs of the year.

In the Grand Final, voting opens just before the first performance and stays open throughout the show. It closes approximately 40 minutes after the last song, and viewers can cast up to 10 votes for their favorite entries.

Albania is eyeing a stellar finish at this year’s grand finale, leaning on ‘Nan’—a track that has already won over audiences with its stirring message and masterful performance.

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Krasniqi dominated her way to the semifinals, overcoming Italy’s Odette Giuffrida in a tense, tactical matchup to earn her spot in the final.

In a repeat of their storied rivalry, Distria Krasniqi takes on Amandine Buchard for the European gold medal. The match promises to be a decisive, high-stakes battle between the two top-tier athletes. /KosovaPress/p.s./

In a statement to the media, the leader of the DP stressed that this report will be submitted to several international institutions, including “the chancelleries of the OSCE, EU and Council of Europe member states”.

“We are distributing the updated preliminary report, which in fact is a kind of interim report. We shall do the utmost to have the final report ready by June 10. But, in the meantime, we are submitting all documents to the ODIHR mission and other observation missions.

“The final report will go to all chancelleries of the OSCE, EU and Council of Europe member states. The final report will go to all international institutions, whose conventions were violated in these elections. The final report will go to all parliaments of OSCE, EU and CoE member states”, Berisha said today. Berisha added that in order to keep the international factor informed, “We have operated with the preliminary report, now we have prepared the interim report and we will try to prepare the final report between June 10 and 15 at all costs”. /a.f/p.s./

Portugal qualified into the final after defeating Italy in the semi-finals after the penalties, with a score of 4-3.

While France defeated Belgium in the semi-final with a score of 3-2 and qualified into the grand final of June 1. /p.s./

The team from Rrogozhina repeated history tonight by reaching a 0-0 draw versus Partizani, the same like last year. But, they took advantage of the regulation to advance to the final match for the championship title against Vllaznia fixed for May 12. Egnatia was in the first place in the standing, so it is qualified for the final match. While Partizani was the forth in standing and it failed for the second year to reach the final.

Vllaznia is the first team to reach the grand final of the season for the championship title in the Abissnet Superiore.

The Red flannels team defeated Dinamo City on Sunday at the “Arena Kombëtare” stadium with a score of 2-1. Bekim Balaj’s two goals in the first half were decisive for the Vllaznia, while Itodo Mandela scored the only goal for Dinamo. /p.s./

President of the Albanian Football Federation Armand Duka gave the news to reporters today after the end of the “Final 4” draw ceremony which determined the fixture Egnatia – Partizani and Vllaznia – Dinamo City.

The head of the football government thanked everyone for the extraordinary contribution made during the regular championship, while wishing success to the four teams in the final phase.

Duka said that, I believe that Albania has high-quality referees up to the level of Albanian football. This is also shown by the contribution of Albanian referees in European competitions up to the group stages”.

Duka said that the four FIFA referees we have will judge in the “Final Four” matches.

“The four Albanian referees will be available in the first semi-finals. They will be determined through a draw and the one who will judge the first match will not be in the second semi-final. Yes, it will be determined by draw. Today, there are required 7 referees; the others will be in other positions. Speaking about the final match, we have invited one of the best referees in the world, the Polish Marciniak, who will judge the final match so that to have as few claims as possible about the winner”, said President Duka in his statement to the media after the draw of the “Final 4”./p.s./

Prime Minister Edi Rama shared today in the social media the message of the Albanian Football Association ambassador for Euro 27 Andi Lila.

Rama stated that Albania has been chosen by UEFA as one of the two host countries of the U-21 Euro in June 2027, but that it will also host the final match in the red and black arena of the “Air Albania Stadium”.

Andi Lila said that, “It is a great honor for the Association to have been selected together with Serbia as the host country of the 2027 U-21 European Championship”.

He emphasized that this is a historic moment for us and a unique opportunity to prove our ability to host international level countries.

“This competition is not only a celebration of football, but also an opportunity to boost infrastructure development and promote our values ​​such as hospitality, passion and love for the beautiful game. We want to show Europe not only our organizational skills, but also the beauties and cultural riches of our country. I invite you to have a taste of Albania in addition to the excitement of the matches and experience our tradition of generosity and hospitality from very close. Thank you UEFA. We welcome you with open arms to Albania”, said Lila in his message.

The two host countries, Albania and Serbia, will each host eight participating teams that will play until the grand final, which will take place at the “National Arena” in Tirana.

The National Arena has capacity for 22,000 spectators and hosted the Final of the UEFA Europa Conference League in 2022.

Meanwhile, the other matches of the 2027 European U-21 Championship to be held in Albania will be played at the “Loro Boriçi” stadium in Shkodra, the “Elbasan Arena” in Elbasan and the “Arena Egnatia” in Rrogozhina. /p.s./

The meeting started with opening remarks from H.E. Silvio Gonzato, EU Ambassador to Albania; Ms Lira Pipa, Deputy Minister of Economy, Culture and Innovation and Ms Sabine Kania, UNOPS Albania and Kosovo Head of Office.

The Committee acknowledged the program’s key achievements, including the progress in restoration, multimedia content production and implementation of the grants component.

Discussions followed focusing on remaining activities of the EU4Culture programme, such as the restoration and revitalization of cultural heritage sites, including the National Historical Museum, the Archaeological Museum of Durrës, the Castle of Bashtova and the Ethnographic Museum of Durrës.

It was also agreed among the members of the Steering Committee on the importance of sustaining and maximizing the value of sites beyond the programme’s duration, as well as key steps forward to ensure steady progress in the months ahead.  /p.s./

The two best teams of the season will meet in a real challenge where everything will be decided, while the match will be under the control of the English referee Anthony Taylor.

Not only Taylor, but also his two assistants and the referee of the VAR room will also be foreigners.

The Department of Communication in the Albanian Football Association said that an agreement has been reached for Taylor’s two assistants to be Gary Beswick (first assistant) and Adam Nunn (second assistant), while the VAR system has been entrusted to Robert Jones.

Anthony Taylor, Gary Beswick and Adam Nunn have also been selected by UEFA to control and judge matches in the finals of the European Championship “Germany 2024”.

The fourth referee in the final match for the championship title between Partizani – Egnatia will be Enea Jorgji.

The grand final between Partizani – Egnatia for the championship title will be played on Sunday, May 26 at the “Air Albania” stadium at 19:00. Tickets for the championship match Partizani – Egnatia and for the minor final, i.e. for the third/fourth place between Skënderbeu – Vllaznia can be bought online at ebileta.al as well as at the physical points near the “Air Albania” stadium and the “Selman Stermasi” stadium at 10:00-18:00 hrs./p.s./

The regular season ended with Egnatia and Partizani leading the Super-League, Vllaznia ranked third, while Skënderbeu ranked fourth.

Hence, the Albanian Football Association cast lots today to determine the two semi-final pairs. After the toss, Egnatia will play versus Vllaznia and Partizani versus Skënderbeu and all matches will be played at the “Air Albania” from May 17-26.

The first semi-final, Partizani – Skënderbeu, will be played on May 17, at 20:00. The second semi-final will be played on May 19 at 20:00, Egnatia – Vllaznia. The final for the third and the fourth place will be played on May 24, 19:00.  And the grand final will be played on May 26 at the “Air Albania”, 19:00. /a.f/r.e/p.s./