With 28 votes in favor, 24 against and two abstentions, Kosovo was accepted as a full member at the UEFA congress in Budapest on May 3, 2016, thus becoming the 55th member of this European football organization.
The then president of the Football Federation of Kosovo, Fadil Vokrri, who was present at the UEFA congress, called Kosovo’s membership in UEFA a historic achievement and delayed justice.
“A delayed justice, but, considering the legal blockades that have been presented to Kosovo, we managed to be accepted, this is an extraordinary achievement. The moments inside the UEFA assembly were difficult because of the direction given to the assembly by several countries. However, we managed to join UEFA and now it’s our turn to join the FIFA congress in Mexico next week. Also in this assembly, the acceptance of Kosovo or not is on the agenda. So, this is a victory for everyone”, said Vokrri.
Serbia was positioned against membership. “Politics and football should not be mixed up in the ugliest way. We will take care of a protest in the region”, Tomislav Karadzic, head of the Football Federation of Serbia, said before the vote.
UEFA membership enabled Kosovar teams to participate in European football competitions. Also, this paved the way for Kosovo to join the World Football Federation – FIFA, in Mexico City, at the congress held on May 12 and 13, 2016.
