UEFA Euro 2012 bids that he was optimistic about preparations in both countries and saw no major obstacles. After a UEFA delegation visited Ukraine in September 2011, he stated the country was "virtually ready for Euro 2012." In April 2012, while on an inspection trip to the host city of Lviv, UEFA president Michel Platini labelled hoteliers as "bandits and crooks" for raising hotel prices in Ukraine for Euro 2012. President Yanukovych ordered his government to prevent hoteliers from charging inflated prices. Some hoteliers had increased prices eighty-fold, causing Prime Minister Mykola Azarov to warn that state control of hotel tariffs might be introduced.
UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying competition, featuring 51 teams, from August 2010 to November 2011. This was the last European Championship to employ the 16-team finals format in use since 1996; from Euro 2016 onward, it was expanded to 24 finalists. Euro 2012 was played at eight venues, four in each host country. Five new stadiums were built for the tournament, and the hosts invested heavily in improving infrastructure such as railways and roads at UEFA's request. Euro 2012 set attendance records for the 16-team format, for the highest aggregate attendance (1,440,896) and average per game (46,481). Spain became the first team to win