Champions League final between Man City and Chelsea moved to Portugal

UEFA has confirmed the final on May 29 has been moved to Porto.

The final capacity limit at the Estadio do Dragao is still to be fixed
Author: Tom DambachPublished 13th May 2021
Last updated 13th May 2021

UEFA has confirmed the Champions League final between Manchester City and Chelsea on May 29 has been moved to Porto.

The match was originally due to be played in Istanbul but UEFA has been seeking an alternative since the British Government placed Turkey on its high-risk 'red list' for international travel amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The European governing body has been involved in talks with UK authorities this week over the possibility of switching the game to London but an agreement couldn't be reached.

6,000 tickets will be made available to each of the finalists, with the final capacity limit at the Estadio do Dragao still to be fixed.

Currently travel into Portugal from countries outside the European Union is only allowed in limited essential cases.

Fans would not face much hindrance returning to the UK, with Portugal currently on the Government's 'green list', meaning quarantine is not required.

European football's governing body said in a statement: "The final was originally scheduled to take place at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul but, following the UK government's decision to place Turkey on its red list of Covid-19 travel destinations, staging the final there would have meant none of the clubs' domestic fans would be able to travel to the game.

"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.''

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