Istanbul 'to host 2023 Champions League final and the 2021 Super Cup'
Turkey ‘to host the 2023 Champions League final after UEFA chiefs agree to switch showpiece event from Munich to Istanbul following decision to play this year’s final in Porto… and capital city will also host Super Cup final in August instead of Belfast’
- Istanbul will host 2023 Champions League final, according to Turkish reports
- This season’s showpiece event was moved from Turkey to Portugal this week
- However, UEFA has agreed to return to Istanbul for the final in two seasons
- Istanbul will reportedly host the Super Cup this year instead of Belfast
Istanbul will reportedly host the Champions League final in 2023 after this season’s showpiece event was moved from Turkey to Portugal as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Manchester City and Chelsea were due to meet at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul on May 29.
However, UEFA were forced to find an alternate location after the UK Government placed Turkey on its red list Covid-19 travel destinations, meaning that supporters would not be able to attend the game.
The 2023 Champions League final will be hosted in Istanbul, according to reports in Turkey
Pep Guardiola’s side were set to meet Thomas Tuchel’s Blues in the Turkish capital on May 29
Wembley Stadium in London, England had been mooted as a possible alternative, but the UK Government’s reluctance to allow 2,000 VIPs and staff enter the country without quarantining forced UEFA too look elsewhere.
The match will instead by played at the Estadio do Dragao in Porto, Portugal, with 6,000 tickets allocated to each club.
And according to the Anadolu Agency, the Champions League final will return to Istanbul in 2023, having been originally scheduled to be held in Munich’s Allianz Arena, the home of Bayern Munich.
The Turkish Football Federation have reportedly held talks with UEFA and have come to an agreement over the re-staging of the final.
However, UK travel restrictions amid a surge of Covid cases has seen the final moved to Porto
Istanbul will also reportedly host this year’s UEFA Super Cup final, instead of Belfast
The two parties are also understood to have reached an agreement that the 2021 UEFA Super Cup – contested between the winners of the Champions League and Europa League – will also be held in Istanbul.
Belfast, in Northern Ireland, was selected as the host city for the Super Cup final but those plans have now reportedly changed.
The Vodafone Park Stadium in Istanbul, which is the home of Turkish giants Besiktas, hosted the 2019 Super Cup final, with Liverpool beating Chelsea on penalties.
Turkey experienced an outbreak of Covid cases last month and are currently recording an average of 15,000 cases a day.
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