Millennium Stadium to host 2017 Champions League final

Cardiff's Millennium Stadium has been confirmed as the venue for the 2017 Champions League final by UEFA, the European governing body for football. The match will be played on Saturday 3rd June while the Women's Champions League final will be held two days earlier at Cardiff City Stadium.

The 74,500-capacity Millennium Stadium hosted the FA Cup final, League Cup final, Community Shield and Football League play-offs from 2001 to 2006. It is equipped with a retractable roof, comprising two sliding 400 tonne sections which take 20 minutes to open or close. It is the second largest covered stadium in the world, behind Cowboys Stadium, Texas, United States.

Real Madrid's Cardiff-born forward Gareth Bale, commented: “It would be fantastic to be involved in front of a packed crowd at such an iconic stadium in 2017.”

Arsenal star, Aaron Ramsey via his Twitter handle @aaronramsey also tweeted: "Great choice, great stadium, hopefully will be there."

The Football Association of Wales (FAW) led the bid to host one of UEFA's major finals with support from the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU), which owns Millennium Stadium.

Factfile: Millennium Stadium
UEFA capacity: 74,500
Tenants: Wales, Wales rugby
Opened: June 1999