LONDON: The all-English Champions League final could be played at home after Turkey was added to England’s red list of countries where all but essential travel is banned due to severe coronavirus outbreaks.

Chelsea and Manchester City are due to meet on May 29 in Istanbul and UEFA was hoping to allow around 10,000 fans into the biggest club game of the European football season.

But the British government on Friday warned supporters not to travel to Turkey after imposing the new travel restrictions, and said the English Football Association was in talks with Champions League organizer UEFA about staging the game in Britain, instead.

The most logical English venue to move the game to is Wembley with the London stadium staging eight games of the European Championship across June and July, so it has UEFA’s required logistics and broadcasting infrastructure already in place. Wembley was also already due to stage the 2024 Champions League final so it could be moved up three years.

While Villa Park in the central England city of Birmingham has been floated as an option, it is an older stadium that would require significant infrastructure being installed to reach UEFA requirements.

British Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the UK was “very open to hosting the final round” of the competition.

Shapps said Chelsea and City supporters should not travel to Istanbul, telling a Downing Street press conference: “I’m afraid we are having to put Turkey on the red list and this will have a number of ramifications.

“First of all, it does mean with the regards to the Champions League, fans should not travel to Turkey. The FA are in discussions with UEFA already on this. We are very open to hosting the final but it is ultimately a decision for UEFA.

“But given there are two English clubs in that final, we look forward to hearing what they have to say. The UK has already got a successful track record of football matches with spectators, so we are well-placed to do it, “Shapps added.

Explaining the travel restrictions, Shapps said: “Red countries are those which should not be visited except in the most extreme of circumstances, where repeated testing and isolation in designated government hotels on return is compulsory.

“Non-UK residents who have been in a red country in the last 10 days will still be barred from entering the UK.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is also calling for the showdown to come to Britain.

“The Champions League is the pinnacle of European club football,” Johnson was quoted as saying by The Sun newspaper on Friday. “And with two English teams contesting the final, it would be a great shame if fans were unable to attend. It would be brilliant to host the game here if we can. I want to help supporters of both clubs see their team in action.”

UEFA said they would take time to reflect on the UK government’s decision. The FA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“UK officials seem to insist but we are moving ahead according to UEFA directions and statements. There were no updates on this from an official channel, we will be hosting the final in Istanbul,” a Turkish Football Federation spokesman said.

UEFA responded to the British government’s decision by saying: “We have just learned that Turkey has been put on the red list and we need a bit of time to reflect on this.”

City have yet to comment on the UK government’s offer to stage the final, with British media reports indicating the club would wait for guidance from UEFA.

But the Chelsea Supporters’ Trust, who are due to meet with UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin, called for the final to be moved to the UK.

“Turkey has been added to the red list and therefore no CFC supporters can travel to watch the UCL final,” said a CST tweet. “We are meeting with the UEFA president this week and will request that the fixture is moved to the UK.”

The issue of whether players would be granted an exemption from the quarantine was not clear but a 14 day quarantine would impact players involved in UEFA’s Euro 2020 which starts on June 11.

Turkey has in recent weeks ranked fourth globally in terms of daily Covd-19 cases, prompting a nationwide lockdown this month until May 17. The move has started to curb the outbreak, with daily cases falling to around 20,000 on Friday from a peak above 63,000 in mid-April.

If the Champions League final was moved to Wembley, the English Football League would have to accept moving the date of the Championship playoff to determine the final promotion place to the Premier League, which is scheduled to be played at the stadium on May 29.

Wembley in recent weeks has staged the only football games with fans in England in 2021 as part of test events, with the crowd for the FA Cup final on May 15 rising to 21,000 people who have to produce a negative coronavirus test.

At least 22,500 fans will be allowed into the three group-stage Euro 2020 games at Wembley in June, with the 90,000-capacity Wembley set to be half-full for the final on July 11.

The pandemic already prevented Istanbul staging the 2020 Champions League final with the game moved to Lisbon to be played in an empty stadium.

Published in Dawn, May 9th, 2021