It has now been officially confirmed by UEFA that the World Cup 2026 qualifier between Serbia and Albania will not take place in Belgrade.
The match is scheduled for October 11 and will be played at the “Gradski stadion Dubočica” in the city of Leskovac, near the border with Kosovo.
The decision was made for security reasons, in order to avoid potential tensions in a fixture that has, in the past, gone far beyond the boundaries of football.
The relocation from Belgrade’s “Rajko Mitić Stadium” was initially requested by the Serbian Football Association itself, and later approved by UEFA, following the agreement of the Albanian Football Association due to high-risk assessments.
A decision regarding the presence of fans is still pending, after the problematic behavior of Serbian supporters during the recent match against England.
Both teams are part of Group K: Albania has collected 8 points from five matches, while Serbia follows closely with 7 points from four games.
The match will kick off on October 11 at 20:45, against the backdrop of memories from the infamous incident of October 14, 2014, when the Serbia–Albania match in Belgrade was marred by serious tensions and had to be abandoned.