The venue for the upcoming Champions League final is set to be confirmed this week amid calls for it to be held at Wembley.
Manchester City take on Chelsea in an all-Premier League clash in the showpiece match of Europe’s elite competition on Saturday, May 29.
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The game is currently set to be staged at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul.
But following news that the UK Government has added Turkey to the ‘red list’ of high-risk COVID-19 countries, there have been growing calls for the final to happen in England.
Here is what we know so far…
Where will the Champions League final be held?
As it stands, City and Chelsea fans would not be permitted to travel to Istanbul.
Changing the location of the final to England would be logical but inevitably, the idea has thrown up a host of questions and UEFA and the British government held talks on Monday about moving the match to Wembley.
The Times reported that major issues failed to be resolved in that meeting and that Portugal is now emerging as the favourite to host the final.
The UK still has strict quarantine rules in place for visitors from many European countries but UEFA are said to be insistent there should be exemptions for all of its staff, as well sponsors and VIPs.
Another sticking point is said to be the crowd, with The Times’ report claiming the UEFA want the capacity at Wembley raised from 10,000 to 22,500.
Their report says Porto has now emerged as a strong candidate to host the final as Portugal have no restrictions on visitors into the country and is on the UK’s ‘green list’.
Talks with UEFA and government officials are expected to resume on Tuesday with a decision on the venue to be made by Wednesday at the latest.
Manchester City face Chelsea in the final on Saturday, May 29.
That is the same day as the Championship play-off final.
However, the EFL is understood to be willing to switch their flagship match to a different date if UEFA do want to move the Champions League final to Wembley.
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