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The joint Scotland/Ireland bid to host Euro 2008 failed today, with the tournament being awarded to the joing Austria/Switzerland instead.
The planning application which has been called in for a public enquiry, would have almost certainly been given the go-ahead had the 2008 bid been succesful.
If AFC do still decide to go ahead with the project - they will now need to foot the estimated £30m bill themselves - with none of the rumoured £20m government cash had 2008 gone ahead.
Dons chairman Stewart Milne told the official Aberdeen website
“We are obviously very disappointed that the Scotland/Ireland bid has been unsuccessful. The benefits which could have been derived for Scotland's economy as well as Scottish football were significant. It is a blow to all concerned.
“With regard to our plans for a world class sports and leisure complex at Bellfield, the planning application is now with the Scottish Executive which is undertaking a public inquiry.
“In the coming weeks we have meetings with our professional advisers to make a decision on our strategy for this inquiry. There is no timescale for the outcome of the inquiry at the moment – the whole matter is in the hands of the Scottish Executive.
“We still believe that the proposals for a new stadium and world class sports and leisure facility at Bellfield present an outstanding opportunity for the North-east and we need to consider how we best move this forward.”