Europe’s particle physicists are faced with a dilemma. They plan a giant accelerator at the CERN nuclear research center, which could be operational by the mid-2040s. However, the machine called FCC (Future Circular Collider) will cost at least 15 billion euros. Funding has not yet been secured. There are also growing indications that China is planning to build a similar facility in the near future and will beat the FCC to the punch. The Circular Electron Positron Collider (CEPC) could be ready for use as early as the mid-2030s and, above all, open to European researchers, at least as things stand at present. Should they seize the opportunity and save the money for the FCC?