Official: Serbia–Albania in Leskovac

It is now official.

The match between Serbia and Albania will not be played at the “Rajko Mitić” Stadium in Belgrade.

UEFA has accepted the Serbian federation’s request for the match to be played at the “Dubočica” Stadium in Leskovac. The match will take place on October 11 and is part of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

UEFA has changed the venue of the match on its official website. Until Monday evening, it said that the match would be played at the “Rajko Mitić” Stadium in Belgrade, while it now lists “Dubočica” in Leskovac.

The Football Association of Serbia had decided to organize the match at the stadium of Crvena Zvezda in Belgrade, just as it did for the match against England, which was played a week earlier. But following the problems that arose during the match against England, which the Serbs lost 5–0, it was decided that the game against Albania would be played in Leskovac. The FSHF’s agreement and UEFA’s decision were required for this.

During the match against England, there were insults directed at Serbia’s coach, Dragan Stojković, whistles aimed at the players, as well as insults directed at Serbia’s president, Aleksandar Vučić. During the match, while fans were insulting the authorities in Serbia, hooligans close to Vučić attacked them.

There were also anti-Kosovo chants and the display of the Serbian flag over a map of Kosovo.

The Serbian federation could be punished for all these violations. One possible penalty is that the match against Albania will be played behind closed doors.

The stadium in Leskovac has a capacity of only 8,000 seats, and it was Vučić’s request that the match against the Red and Blacks be played in this city. It was reported that this was done to avoid insults directed at the Serbian president and his government. In Belgrade, 40,000 spectators attended the match against England, and controlling such a crowd was impossible. Meanwhile, managing 8,000 people is more feasible, including by controlling the ticket sales process.

The October 11 match is decisive for second place in Group K of the World Cup qualifiers. England is expected to take first place.

Albania currently has one point more than Serbia, but has also played one more match. The Serbian president, Vučić, has also announced that he will be in Leskovac.