In case you’ve just returned from Mars, let me fill you in. Liverpool will face Real Madrid on Saturday 26th May in the UEFA Champions League final in Kyiv, Ukraine.
Predictably, Liverpool and Real Madrid fans alike will be counting down the hours until kick off. Unfortunately, whilst the silver lining gleams, it’s still accompanied by a cloud…
Admirably, UEFA has a commitment to sharing the final of their showpiece competition around Europe, hence the selection of the NSC Olympiyskiy as the venue.
In terms of the stadium, the stage seems ideal: it’s in a capital city; has a capacity of 70,000 and Kyiv boasts none other than former boxer Vitali Klitschko as its mayor.
However,, the decision by UEFA to select the Ukrainian capital to host the culmination of the competition seems to have not taken into account those people which football could survive without; the fans.
Liverpool fans have, to name a few places, travelled to Slovenia, Germany, Italy and Portugal whilst following their team around Europe this campaign, and all of this will inevitably have left a financial hole in most of these fans’ b.
However, with one game to go, these supporters will have to reach much deeper into their already worn thin pockets. As I mentioned above, the stadium seats 70,000 people, what I didn’t mention, however, is that of these 70,000, only around 16,600 tickets will be made available to each set of fans. That leaves almost 38,000 tickets for corporate partners of UEFA. That’s just the beginning, UEFA are also selling some tickets for as much as £394.
As beautiful as Kyiv is reported to be, it seems the desperation of fans to see their team lift the trophy first hand is being exploited by hotel owners and transport providers. There have been stories of hotel bookings previously made being cancelled by owners so that these rooms can be sold for an inflated price.
Flights to Kyiv have also taken an atmospheric rise since, with return flights costing from £700-£900. They cost £218 if you go a week earlier and return before the final. Thomas Cook, a corporate partner of the Reds, have come under public scrutiny for the price rise, tweeting the following statement:
Twitter: https://t.co/wXqlnxAOLg (@thomascooksport)Twitter: https://t.co/wXqlnxAOLg (@thomascooksport)
What is disappointing is that this potential circumstance was not thought of sooner, and a great deal of the blame must lie with UEFA, as Kiev is not a city made to host such a volume of people at one time.
It simply doesn’t have the necessary infrastructure to cope, hence the logistical issues and obscene price rises. Sadly, it seems too late for UEFA to do anything to help fans on this occasion, but what is key is that they learn from their mistakes to improve this next time around.
Football is nothing without fans.
It seems as though UEFA have forgotten this.
