Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour will cover the costs of official fans' trip to Champions League final in Porto; 6,000 City and Chelsea fans can attend game; Final was originally scheduled for Istanbul but has been moved to Portugal after Turkey was put on Government's 'red list'
Thursday 20 May 2021 12:59, UK
Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour will cover the costs of the official fans' trip to the Champions League final.
City and Chelsea are each allowed to take 6,000 fans to Porto for the all-Premier League final on May 29.
The fixture was due to take place at the Ataturk Stadium in Istanbul, but pressure mounted for the venue to be changed after the UK Government placed Turkey on its 'red' list of at-risk countries and urged fans not to travel for the fixture.
Porto was selected despite an attempt by UEFA to move the final to Wembley and was in talks with the UK Government, but there was a considerable sticking point over waiving quarantine rules for the 2,000 staff, sponsors, VIPs and foreign media.
Speaking about the initiative, Sheikh Mansour said: "Pep and the team have had such a remarkable season and their reaching the Champions League Final after a very challenging year represents a truly historic moment for the Club.
"It is therefore incredibly important that as many fans as possible have the opportunity to attend this special game. Especially those who have supported Manchester City through good and bad times for so many years."
City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said: "The challenges faced by supporters ahead of this final are multiple, both in financial and logistical terms.
"Hopefully His Highness' initiative allows the majority of our attending fans to focus on enjoying the day rather than worrying about how to bear the burden of travel costs which have become all the more onerous due to the effects of the pandemic."
