Foreign fans complain about Eden! They say a bigger stadium should host the ECL final

UEFA announced yesterday a sensational news for Czech football and for Prague Slavia. The final of the 2022/2023 European Conference League will be played in Prague’s Eden. Czech fans can rejoice. However, most foreign football fans are wondering about the decision. What are the reactions of foreign fans to the choice of Eden and Prague?

The European Conference League is the youngest of the European competitions organised under the auspices of UEFA, and the 2021/2022 season is the ECL’s first test. Performance-wise, it is the weakest competition behind the Champions League and Europa League.

The first final match of the European Conference League will be played in the Albanian capital Tirana on 25 May at Arena Kombëtare. Albania’s national stadium can hold 22,500 spectators.

The second season of the EKL will have a strong Czech footprint! The final will be played in Prague’s Eden, with the exact date set by UEFA for 7 June 2023.

This is clearly a huge success for Czech football and Prague Slavia. In any case, the UEFA decision has sparked a great debate, especially among foreign fans, most of whom are rather critical of the decision.

If the Susians fail to defend their championship title, they may try to improve on this year’s performance in the Conference Europa League. Making it to the final could be a huge motivation for Slavia.

Reaction from foreign fans

Of course, Rangers FC fans have also joined in the discussion, as they obviously still haven’t forgotten about Slavia. One asked UEFA

“20,000 capacity? What the hell kind of decision is that? Do UEFA ever make decisions for the fans? Ten thousand tickets will be distributed to club sponsors etc. and then there will be hardly any real fans in the stadium.”

“Why are you putting a European final in a stadium of 20,000? The average attendance at Ipswich Town in League One (England’s third tier league) was higher ( 21,779 spectators per game on average).”

Most of the other reactions are in a similar vein, which is mostly critical in tone. A few Czech fans also joined the debate and defended Eden.

Source: UEFA