After Liverpool brushed aside Sparta Prague, they are now just two ties away from the Europa League final in Dublin in what could be Jurgen Klopp’s final match as manager.
The prospect of Liverpool — who were joined in the quarter-finals by other teams with large fanbases including Marseille, AC Milan, Roma and West Ham United — reaching the final at the Aviva Stadium on Wednesday, May 22, has raised concerns about how the city will cope.
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This is especially the case because Liverpool, one of the best-supported teams in Europe, have a large and passionate Irish following.
Friday’s draw pitted Liverpool against Atalanta, Benfica against Marseille, Bayer Leverkusen against West Ham, and saw an all-Italian clash between AC Milan and Roma.
Dublin was awarded this year’s Europa League final after the city missed out on hosting four matches at Euro 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Are there security concerns?
This week, Theodore Theodoridis, UEFA’s general secretary, admitted there were a couple of sides left in the competition that would present an “extremely challenging” situation.
UEFA has reserved the 82,300-capacity Croke Park stadium, the biggest stadium in Ireland and home of Gaelic sports finals, as a possible fan zone, but they fear that might not be enough.
Theodoridis said: “We are working on this, together with the local authorities and Football Supporters Europe. If we do get to one of those scenarios, we will also go to the supporters of the clubs involved to find the best solution.
“The biggest problem we have now is whether Croke Park would be big enough because we think we would need more alternatives for public viewing for the people who will be in Dublin. It’s not an easy operation and it is just for a couple of scenarios which would make it extremely complicated — especially with clubs who have a large fanbase in Ireland.”
However, one of those clubs who would have brought a big following, Rangers — they took around 200,000 fans to the Manchester final in 2008 that was marred by trouble when a big screen in the fan zone blacked out — were knocked out by Benfica. They lost 1-0 at Ibrox having drawn the first leg 2-2.
Theodoridis said UEFA was waiting to see who made the semi-final before involving the fanbases in those discussions.
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UEFA’s website says there will be a fan festival at Dublin Castle from 11am to 10pm on the day before the final and then from 10am to 5pm on May 22, with a chance to mingle with the former Manchester United player John O’Shea, who is the Europa League final ambassador. At the moment, it is listed as a free event, but tickets may be required, with an announcement to come.
When asked about potential security concerns, a Football Association of Ireland (FAI) spokesperson said “contingency plans” were in place.
They said: “Dublin is excited and ready to host a successful UEFA Europa League final, ensuring that the finalist clubs and their supporters experience a professional and warm Irish welcome. As one of the biggest club football matches in the world, this is a genuine major event and, as such, we scenario plan for all eventualities.
“In the case of significant demand, we have contingency plans in place to cater for all scenarios, which include additional viewing sites, with all local stakeholders focused on delivering a successful final for UEFA. We wish all the clubs involved in the competition the best of luck and we look forward to working with UEFA over the coming months, finalising our preparations and getting ready to welcome thousands of football fans to our city in May.”
Meanwhile, a police spokesperson added: “As with any major event that takes place in the jurisdiction, a Garda Siochana (Irish police force) will liaise with all relevant stakeholders and an appropriate operational policing plan will be put in place.”
How many tickets will be available?
The final is being held at the 51,700-capacity Aviva Stadium.
In previous years, Europa League final tickets have gone on sale towards the end of April — this year the semi-finals are played on Thursday, May 2 and May 9 — with a ballot application lasting a week. All tickets for the final will be mobile tickets and delivered on the UEFA mobile tickets app.
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Hospitality packages on UEFA’s website are sold out, despite being priced between €740 (£632) and €1,090 (£931) per person. This includes a welcome drink and hospitality three hours before kick-off and 90 minutes after the game.
The Aviva Stadium last hosted the final in 2011, when Porto defeated Braga 1-0.
To give an indication of how the tickets will be allocated: for last’s year final at the 63,000-capacity Puskas Arena in Budapest, Roma and Sevilla received 15,000 each. The remaining tickets go to other/local fans, UEFA, UEFA’s member national associations, commercial partners and broadcasters.
Accommodation issues
The final may be more than two months away, but accommodation in the city is selling out quickly.
For the night of the final, 98 per cent of places to stay on Booking.com in Dublin are listed as unavailable.
One city centre hostel is offering a bed in an eight-bed dormitory, with a shared bathroom and toilet for £236 on the night of the final. To book a night at the three-star Gardiner Lodge bed and breakfast in the centre of Dublin costs £514, while a junior suite at the Temple Bar Hotel is £945.
There appears to be more availability on Airbnb, but some hosts are charging more than £1,000 a night to stay in a city centre apartment — around 10 times the standard price.
How expensive is it to get to Dublin?
Direct flights from Liverpool to Dublin on the morning of the final (to allow plenty of time before the match) and returning the next day are more than £300. There are still cheaper flights from Liverpool to Belfast, Northern Ireland, a two-hour drive away from the Republic of Ireland capital. Liverpool fans could fly cheaply to Ireland West Airport Knock in County Mayo the day before the final and then drive three hours to Dublin.
There is also the option to take the 3hr 30m ferry from Holyhead, Wales (a two-hour drive from Liverpool), to Dublin — but those have all sold out on May 22. There is still some availability for the crossing the day before and this is around £90 for a return.
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Flying from Manchester to Dublin is more cost-effective — but still more than £200. There are cheap flights from Manchester to Shannon, Cork and Belfast — albeit all of those involve a two-hour-plus drive to Dublin.
From London, return flights to Dublin are presently around £100 to £150.
Will history repeat itself at a UEFA final?
In recent years, UEFA have come under fire for their inadequate planning for their showpiece events, while the issues faced by away fans in Europe this season have been numerous.
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Nowhere was this more apparent than in the shambolic organisation that overshadowed the Champions League final in Paris in 2022. There were chaotic scenes as fans tried to enter the Stade de France, with a failed ticketing system and security operation resulting in dangerous crushes around the ground.
Many fans were tear-gassed by heavy-handed police officers. Meanwhile, after the match, hundreds of supporters were subjected to random attacks by local gangs as they attempted to make their way home.
UEFA and the French authorities initially tried to pin the blame on ticketless fans. However, an independent review in February last year found UEFA must “bear primary responsibility for failures which almost led to a disaster.” The review added that trying to blame ticketless fans was “reprehensible”.
There was criticism of last year’s Champions League final in Istanbul, where fans were left stranded after the game amid a scramble for the late-night shuttle bus back into the city. Supporters complained that there was no water in the stadium.
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin later admitted “not everything was perfect” with the final at the Ataturk Stadium, located almost an hour from the city centre.
Meanwhile, Rangers fans who attended the Europa League final in Seville in 2022 against Eintracht Frankfurt complained of overzealous policing and a lack of food and water in almost 40C (104F) heat that led to people fainting.
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Disorder tarnished the UEFA Euro 2020 final between England and Italy at Wembley Stadium when thousands of ticketless fans tried to force their way into the ground. The independent review by Baroness Louise Casey of Blackstock, in December 2021, said a day that should have been a celebration ended up being “a source of national shame” and was only a few “near misses” away from turning into a tragedy.
(Top photo: Ben McShane/Sportsfile via Getty Images)