Champions League final switched to Porto
The all-English Champions League final has been moved to Dragao Stadium in Porto. Photo: AP
The all-English Champions League final on May 29 has been moved to Porto.
The match between Chelsea and Manchester City had been due to take place in Istanbul, but UEFA was forced to consider other options after the British government last week placed Turkey on its high-risk ‘red list’ for international travel amid the coronavirus pandemic, denying fans the chance to attend.
Wembley was considered as an alternative to Istanbul, but the British government could not accommodate the request to allow quarantine exemptions for thousands of sponsors, VIPs and broadcasters, which made Porto the frontrunner.
UEFA confirmed that 6000 tickets would be made available to each of the finalists, with the final capacity limit at the Estadio do Dragao still to be fixed.
The UEFA Champions League final between Man. City & Chelsea will be held at the Estádio do Dragão in Porto.#UCL | #UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/mYmewt1hqH
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) May 13, 2021
European football’s governing body said in a statement: “After a year of fans being locked out of stadiums, UEFA thought that everything needed to be done to ensure the supporters of the two finalist teams could attend.
“UEFA discussed moving the match to England but, despite exhaustive efforts on the part of the Football Association and the authorities, it was not possible to achieve the necessary exemptions from UK quarantine arrangements.”
It is the second consecutive year Istanbul has been unable to host the showpiece as planned due to the global health crisis with Portugal stepping in.
Last season Lisbon held a mini-tournament culminating in a closed door final when Bayern Munich defeated Paris Saint-Germain, but this year Porto’s Dragao Stadium will welcome 6000 fans from each team.