At a time when most European championships are about to resume service, UEFA is refining the backdrop for the end of the Champions League season. And the rumor circulating for several weeks seems to be confirmed. From the quarters, everything should be played on single matches. And in the same place. Originally planned at the Atatürk Olympic stadium in Istanbul (Turkey), the grand finale of the competition should indeed be relocated.
UEFA’s goal is clear: to play the rest of its competition in one city, behind closed doors. Two cities were also candidates: Lisbon and Madrid. And according to AS, the Portuguese capital is on the verge of winning the bet. Unlike its Spanish neighbor (the Metropolitano is available, but the Bernabéu is under construction), the Lusitanian city will be able to host matches.
Everyone in Lisbon
The Estadio Da Luz and the José Alvalade XXI stadium should thus be the two theaters for the end of the competition (from the quarters). As a reminder, there are still four knockout stages to go: Juventus-Olympique Lyonnais (0-1 outward), Manchester City-Real Madrid ((2-1), Bayern Munich-Chelsea (3-0) and FC Barcelona-Napoli (1-1) before the start of the quarter-finals These matches will be played over the weekend of 8-9 August (2 matches on Saturday and 2 on Sunday).
The last four qualified teams will then have to go to Lisbon. Once all these beautiful people together, the quarter-finals would start on August 12. As for the final, it would be held on the 23rd of the same month at Estadio Da Luz. In total, it would therefore be 7 games to play in 12 days. A very tight format.