The Chechen capital of Grozny in southern Russia is a contender to host the Super Cup in July, Russian Premier League president Sergei Pryadkin said Thursday.
League champions Zenit St. Petersburg will play Russian Cup holders Rubin Kazan in the season-opening match, the first time the two teams have met in the competition.
Chechen First Deputy Prime Minister and Terek Grozny club president Magomed Daudov wants the match held in Grozny because the city’s Akhmad Arena, completed last year, is yet to host a major match, Pryadkin said.
“The first deputy prime minister is asking to host the match at the new Akhmat-Arena, where events like this have not yet taken place. The arena in question has earned the very best recommendations,” Pryadkin said.
The other candidate cities are Samara, where Russian Premier League side Krylya Sovetov is celebrating its 75th anniversary, and Moscow, he said.
Zenit, undefeated in both their previous Super Cup matches, are the holders after their double-winning team defeated 2010 league runner-up CSKA Moscow 1-0 in the southern city of Krasnodar in March 2011.
CSKA are the most successful team in the history of the Super Cup, with four wins from seven appearances, most recently winning against Rubin Kazan in 2009.
English Premier League chairman Dave Richards earlier this month recommended that Russia holds 2018 World Cup matches in Chechnya.
