Increasing concerns on political unrest in Istanbul: Champions League finals likely to be moved for the third consecutive year

Increasing concerns over political unrest in Turkey could impact the Champions League finals’ move to a different venue for the third time in a row, as reports suggest. European football’s authoritative body reportedly sticks to keeping the final at Istanbul.

Concerns about political unrest might call for a new venue for the Champions League finals

The Turkish presidential elections will be held just a month before Istanbul hosts the Champions League finals in Ataturk Stadium. The city was due to host the final twice before it in three years. However, it couldn’t be initiated due to Covid issues. 2020 saw the clash between Bayern Munich and PSG in Lisbon following a mini-tournament between the teams to finalize the last eight. 

Just a year after it, the Turkish capital was ready to host Chelsea vs Manchester City. Unfortunately, a surge in Covid 19 cases led to moving the finals to Porto, Portugal. 

Last year, the face-off between Liverpool and Real Madrid was scheduled in St. Petersburg. But, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the resulting sporting isolation called for a move to Paris and the Stade de France. 

That match had a bidding round to select where the final would be played, although it’s not very likely that a similar condition will come up this year, provided the shorter time window between the election and the final.

A month of time between the events

There’s about s month’s time between the events. The elections are due on May 14th, whereas the finals are to be held on 10th June. But UEFA is expected to be prepared to change venues at short notice, taking lessons from what had happened the last three times with consecutive shifts in venues.

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