Be careful, heat wave coming from the North! Under scorching temperatures, some 130,000 Frankfurt and Glasgow Rangers supporters have taken over Sevilla since Tuesday, on the eve of the Europa League final between the two teams. This Wednesday evening’s match promises to be heated between two clubs who want to reconnect with their glorious past: the Rangers have won nothing on the continental scene for fifty years and the European Cup Winners’ Cup (1972), the ‘Eintracht have not been crowned in Europe since their UEFA Cup in 1980.
The German “Eagles” and the Scottish “Gers” will therefore be counting on their loyal supporters to win this new continental trophy. More than 80,000 Scottish fans and 50,000 German fans are expected in Seville according to club estimates, and additional flights have even been scheduled to reach the Andalusian capital. Only 10,000 tickets had yet been made available to each of the two clubs.
A fan zone has been organized at the Cartuja stadium, another stadium in Seville, where nearly 60,000 people without an entry ticket for the Pizjuan will still be able to watch the match live on Wednesday evening. Security will be one of the major fears in Sevilla, especially after the violent incidents that marred the 2008 UEFA Cup final in Manchester, won by Zenit Saint Petersburg against Rangers (2-0). After a breakdown, of uncertain origin, of a giant screen, clashes broke out between the police and a handful of supporters.
Additional police and urinals
Nearly 5,000 police officers will be mobilized in Seville to ensure everyone’s safety, reports the BBC. A “special cleaning plan” will even be put in place, including 200 workers who will clean the streets on the day of the final, as well as the installation of a good hundred urinals in “the busiest places in the city”. , adds Le Figaro.
Fans who do not have seats at the stadium will be able to see the match on various giant screens installed in the city. They will be better off than those remaining in Glasgow, since the club has given up broadcasting the match in its lair of Ibrox Park due to a lack of “qualified personnel” to supervise such an event. In Frankfurt, on the other hand, the “Biergarten” will be full and the club has sold 50,000 tickets for the live broadcast in the stadium.