Jurgen Klopp backs Liverpool fan group over criticism of UEFA for Champions League final ticket prices and allocation vs Real Madrid
Speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of the game against Tottenham Hotspur tonight (h/t Liverpool Echo), Jurgen Klopp extended his support to the Liverpool supporters’ union after their letter to UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin over Champions League final ticket prices and allocation vs Real Madrid.
The UCL final takes place in Paris at Parc des Princes on 28th May later this month after the Reds beat Villarreal while Los Galacticos got the better of Manchester City in their respective semi-finals.
In a stadium with a maximum capacity of 75,000, it comes as a surprise that fans of both teams have only been allocated 20,000 tickets. Most of the travelling fans from Anfield will have to pay over £125-a-seat while the cost of stay and airplane tickets continue to rise.
Amidst this, Spirit of Shankly, the Liverpool supporters’ union, wrote to Aleksander Ceferin, who is the president of UEFA, to reconsider the allocation and prices of tickets for the final.
Klopp is close to the fans and closely knit within the Liverpool community despite arriving on Merseyside just 7 years ago from Dortmund. He was always going to back the supporters’ claims because he gets the common man and understands that the sport would be nothing without them.
“I understand 100,000% where Spirit of Shankly is coming from. It is absolutely not right but it happens everywhere. It doesn’t make it better, just in this specific case you only get 50% of the tickets and the rest goes to people who pay thousands and thousands for the tickets.”
However, he believes that a change may not be on the cards despite the valid criticisms. The former Borussia Dortmund and Mainz 05 manager even went on to claim that UEFA are no saints when it comes to all this.
“UEFA is not the saints of football, they never were. What they have in the Champions League is a fantastic, fantastic product, which it is. If you would have asked me, we never had to change that. But they lost here a little bit of money and there a little bit of money.”
Klopp is a pragmatic man. He comprehends that while it is a sorry situation, it is probably unavoidable because this is the showpiece occasion and the ideal opportunity for the governing body to make profits and even cover for losses they may have suffered along the way.
It is truly sad to see what football has become when it comes to ticket pricing and allocations for these big games. The sport was brought to its feet by the common man but over the years, has been capitalized on to make it a product sold at the whims of the seller. Some that get their hands on it are also enticed to then sell it on for big money in order to turn a quick profit.
What used to be an affordable experience for fans decades back can now, at times, cost them a pretty penny- even if they want to just get down to Anfield to watch a league game. This is especially the case for fans outside the city who aren’t season ticket holders.
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As for the final, there is unlikely to be any change- just like Klopp hinted. The best we can do is get down to Paris in numbers, back the team, and out-shout Madrid fans to make our players feel at home.
