The Problem with the UEFA Europa Conference League

UEFA kick started a new era for European competition this season with the introduction of a third tier competition in the form of the Europa Conference League. Many in the football world have viewed this tournament as something not worthy of their team’s time but UEFA have insisted they are serious about the tournament.

This seasons tournament has been a success with many big teams in Europe progressing and interesting matches have provided great entertainment in the knockout stages of the competition- with Roma and Feyenoord making it to the final to decide who will win the right to be the first ever champions of this new trophy. However, the excitement of the final has been somewhat dampened by the venue, a 20,000 seater stadium in Tirana, Albania.

Roma and Feyenoord both have huge followings and would have easily filled a venue as grand as the Nou Camp but instead are being made to play the final in a small stadium in which sponsors will receive the lion’s share of tickets. Perhaps, UEFA did not anticipate two teams with such big supports to make it to the final, but this is problem that will surely persist over the coming years with many major clubs taking part in the competition. UEFA have claimed to take the competition seriously, yet they have announced that next season’s final will take place in a similar sized stadium; the Sinobo Stadium, home of Slavia Prague, which holds a meagre 20,800.

With small stadiums and tickets for these finals being withheld from actual fans, it makes for a dull affair inside the ground and does not provide the best advert for UEFA’s new venture. Attendances for both Roma and Feyenoord’s matches in this competition have been excellent and shows the demand for a bigger venue is there. With sponsors and VIP’s snapping up most tickets for this game, fans who have travelled far and wide over the course of the season will be deprived the chance to back their team in the ground on their quest for European glory.