Champions League Final | Tickets - City Official Package + UEFA Tickets | 2022 Final (pg 1033)

Chelsea website equally lacking in info. Notice they didn't use "cognisant".

Chelsea Football Club is currently working with UEFA on arrangements for supporters attending the Champions League final against Manchester City on Saturday 29 May.​

We will communicate information as soon as it is available and thank our supporters for their patience.
It was announced yesterday (Thursday) that the final will now take place at Porto’s Estadio do Dragao in northern Portugal, after Covid restrictions meant supporters would not be able to attend the match at its original venue in Turkey.
 
The whole situation is ridiculous! Under these pandemic circumstances, why are UEFA even contemplating thousands of fans from the same country having to travel for a final, when their country of origin is more than capable of hosting this final?

Boris Johnson is a cunning character. What's the betting his impending covid news conference about the Indian variant spreading like wildfire through the UK, puts a spanner in UEFA's spokes....

When politics & sport collide. :-|
 
https://www.visitportugal.com/en/content/covid-19-measures-implemented-portugal

Update from Portugal for those who are going via other countries

  • Flights to and from Portugal are allowed for:
    - Flights to and from the countries of the European Union or from Schengen Associated countries:
Countries with an incidence rate equal to or greater than 150 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the last 14 days - Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Poland, Romania Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Switzerland
- Only “essential travel” is allowed
- Must present proof of a negative test to COVID-19 (RT-PCR), carried out within 72 hours before boarding time

Countries with an incidence rate equal to or greater than 500 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the last 14 days - Brazil, Cyprus, Croatia, France, India, Lithuania, Netherlands, South Africa and Sweden
- Only “essential travel” is allowed
- Must present proof of a negative test to COVID-19 (RT-PCR), carried out within 72 hours before boarding time
- It is compulsory to comply with a prophylactic isolation period of 14 days, at home or in a place indicated by the health authorities, after entering mainland Portugal

Flights from Ireland, Finland, Iceland and Malta have no restrictions, but passengers need a negative test to COVID-19 (RT-PCR), carried out within 72 hours before boarding time.

- British Tourists are allowed to enter Portugal as of the 00:00 of 17th of May, but must present proof of a negative test to COVID-19 (RT-PCR), carried out within 72 hours before boarding time "
Would someone who is travelling independently be able to get a ticket?
 
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Seeing a few comments about the negative PCR test required before leaving the UK and ways to obtain one as cheap as possible.

My advice is DO NOT scrimp on the cheapest one you find, which will undoubtedly be a test at home postal service job, possibly with a company with suspect reputation.

You only have a 72 hour window, and realistically only one chance to get this right before departure. Whilst I'm not necessarily against postal service tests, please ensure you use a company that look reliable and have good feedback.

If you're spending hundreds on flights, hotels, other associated costs and expenses....to then try and save a few quid on your outbound test is madness and risks fucking up the whole itinerary and costing you all that money.
Imagine not getting your test back in time (or getting an inconclusive result as done incorrectly) and not being able to travel to Portugal, losing hundreds and hundreds of pounds in the process, all because you tried to save 30 quid on a cheap, dodgy postal test.

If it was me, I would play it safe and book into a clinic to avoid any possible postal issues or delays and ensure the swab is taken correctly by a professional. Boots do PCR tests at most of their stores for £99. There is a company called Biograd in Liverpool that do £99 tests and guarantee the results within 24 hours. I'm sure there are plenty of other options out there, put the time in to do the research.

To the Blue who took my advice and didn't cancel his Istanbul flights in the hope the airline cancelled, and they did, I'm glad you're not out of pocket :)
 
……..To the Blue who took my advice and didn't cancel his Istanbul flights in the hope the airline cancelled, and they did, I'm glad you're not out of pocket :)

That was my advice … and if you want to fight about it, I’m sending ma dad !

Oh yeh, and your advice about testing is spot on. FYI : All the airport testing providers are very reliable. I’m getting my PCR via a in car test at Edinburgh on the Tuesday before my Friday flight.
 
Seeing a few comments about the negative PCR test required before leaving the UK and ways to obtain one as cheap as possible.

My advice is DO NOT scrimp on the cheapest one you find, which will undoubtedly be a test at home postal service job, possibly with a company with suspect reputation.

You only have a 72 hour window, and realistically only one chance to get this right before departure. Whilst I'm not necessarily against postal service tests, please ensure you use a company that look reliable and have good feedback.

If you're spending hundreds on flights, hotels, other associated costs and expenses....to then try and save a few quid on your outbound test is madness and risks fucking up the whole itinerary and costing you all that money.
Imagine not getting your test back in time (or getting an inconclusive result as done incorrectly) and not being able to travel to Portugal, losing hundreds and hundreds of pounds in the process, all because you tried to save 30 quid on a cheap, dodgy postal test.

If it was me, I would play it safe and book into a clinic to avoid any possible postal issues or delays and ensure the swab is taken correctly by a professional. Boots do PCR tests at most of their stores for £99. There is a company called Biograd in Liverpool that do £99 tests and guarantee the results within 24 hours. I'm sure there are plenty of other options out there, put the time in to do the research.

To the Blue who took my advice and didn't cancel his Istanbul flights in the hope the airline cancelled, and they did, I'm glad you're not out of pocket :)
I agree for the outbound. Backup of course is then to take one at the airport if necessary.
 
For all those who have booked independent travel


I think that this raises more questions than answers. The article states:

Uefa promised Manchester City and Chelsea fans they would not be stuck with worthless flights and hotels for the Champions League final after Portugal lifted its ban on British tourists but failed to rule out forcing those attending the game into a travel “bubble”.

How do you force independent travellers into a bubble?

Secondly, it states:

"There will be a system that allows the small number of fans that won’t be on club trips to pick their tickets up.”

Do they not realise that the 'small number of fans' is actually most of us?
 
I agree for the outbound. Backup of course is then to take one at the airport if necessary.

You wouldn't get the result in time.

Even the fastest PCR tests take hours as they have to go to a lab for the result.
I'm not sure of any airport that is set up to do rapid PCR tests that would give you the result within the 2/3 hours you would be there.
 
I think that this raises more questions than answers. The article states:

Uefa promised Manchester City and Chelsea fans they would not be stuck with worthless flights and hotels for the Champions League final after Portugal lifted its ban on British tourists but failed to rule out forcing those attending the game into a travel “bubble”.

How do you force independent travellers into a bubble?

Secondly, it states:

"There will be a system that allows the small number of fans that won’t be on club trips to pick their tickets up.”

Do they not realise that the 'small number of fans' is actually most of us?
They also failed to rule out stoning the losing teams fans to death. There's loads of things they didn't rule out - like giving away the tickets for free! The first 17 words in what you've copied is the important bit. :)

Come on mate, stop fretting. It seriously won't help anything regardless of the outcome
 
They also failed to rule out stoning the losing teams fans to death. There's loads of things they didn't rule out - like giving away the tickets for free! The first 17 words in what you've copied is the important bit. :)

Come on mate, stop fretting. It seriously won't help anything regardless of the outcome
To be honest, getting your hopes up about what you want the outcome to be is no more helpful than being cynical about the whole process. I don't know from where you get your optimism, but if our fate is in the hands of incompetent football administrators and a cautious Portuguese government then I make no apologies for fearing the worst. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best. It works.
 
You wouldn't get the result in time.

Even the fastest PCR tests take hours as they have to go to a lab for the result.
I'm not sure of any airport that is set up to do rapid PCR tests that would give you the result within the 2/3 hours you would be there.
My mistake. But there’s a 3 hour one at Manchester Airport Hilton as an emergency. £159
 
To be honest, getting your hopes up about what you want the outcome to be is no more helpful than being cynical about the whole process. I don't know from where you get your optimism, but if our fate is in the hands of incompetent football administrators and a cautious Portuguese government then I make no apologies for fearing the worst. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best. It works.
That's fair. I agree it's no more useful. No point worrying about what you can't control.

Prepare for the worst (be ready to rebook on the official trip), hope for the best (travels already sorted and we get to enjoy Porto).
 
To be honest, getting your hopes up about what you want the outcome to be is no more helpful than being cynical about the whole process. I don't know from where you get your optimism, but if our fate is in the hands of incompetent football administrators and a cautious Portuguese government then I make no apologies for fearing the worst. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best. It works.
A cautious Portuguese government? They‘ve just allowed tens of thousands per day of UK visitors into the country from Monday before almost every other European country.
It was clear (or at least I tried to explain the context several times) that the bubble conversation was in response to a specific question ‘if travellers weren’t admitted how could the event be hosted’. Visitors now can be admitted so it changes the situation. UEFA have even now issued a statement on it. I’m more hopeful now than I’ve been in the last 48 hours.
If you remember there was talk for Istanbul that City had an initial 4500 tickets with an additional 1500 that had to be sold by the club as a club trip. I expect similar will be done here to appease the Portuguese government and the locals. Even the Mayor of Porto said tonight they were ready and looking forward to hosting us. Chill :-)
 
My mistake. But there’s a 3 hour one at Manchester Airport Hilton as an emergency. £159

Yeah, I guess it's about the best available back up plan going if shit has really hit the fan.
I'm guessing you'd need to pre-book it though as getting a slot on the day could prove troublesome?

And then pre-booking and cancelling if ultimately not needed comes with various admin charges depending on when cancelled.

All this potential hassle could be avoided by booking into a clinic based test and coughing up the desired amount (generally £100-£120) to ensure the test is done correctly and results received on time.

On a trip of this nature, with so many rules regs and hoops to jump through, keeping the outbound test simple for peace of mind is well worth the relatively small additional price to pay.

All my opinion of course :)
 
Yeah, I guess it's about the best available back up plan going if shit has really hit the fan.
I'm guessing you'd need to pre-book it though as getting a slot on the day could prove troublesome?

And then pre-booking and cancelling if ultimately not needed comes with various admin charges depending on when cancelled.

All this potential hassle could be avoided by booking into a clinic based test and coughing up the desired amount (generally £100-£120) to ensure the test is done correctly and results received on time.

On a trip of this nature, with so many rules regs and hoops to jump through, keeping the outbound test simple for peace of mind is well worth the relatively small additional price to pay.

All my opinion of course :)
I think when many have already shelled out a small fortune for flights and accommodation, it’s advisable not to try and cut corners and get a test on the cheap so your suggestion is the best option.
Are the clinic based testing centres reliable for same day results? I’ve not done this yet but someone at work got stitched up before Christmas when he paid about £120 for a test where he had to send it off in the post and the results didn’t come back in time for his flight
 
A cautious Portuguese government? They‘ve just allowed tens of thousands per day of UK visitors into the country from Monday before almost every other European country.
It was clear (or at least I tried to explain the context several times) that the bubble conversation was in response to a specific question ‘if travellers weren’t admitted how could the event be hosted’. Visitors now can be admitted so it changes the situation. UEFA have even now issued a statement on it. I’m more hopeful now than I’ve been in the last 48 hours.
If you remember there was talk for Istanbul that City had an initial 4500 tickets with an additional 1500 that had to be sold by the club as a club trip. I expect similar will be done here to appease the Portuguese government and the locals. Even the Mayor of Porto said tonight they were ready and looking forward to hosting us. Chill :-)
They are cautious. They have accepted hosting rights but it is clear that there has been a lack of clarity about what this entails. In the best case scenario it means independent travellers can get into the ground in any number, but I don't think it's wrong to express concerns about how this might not be the case.

You question the notion that the Portuguese government are cautious but in the same post claim that they and the Portuguese public need to be appeased. I don't see the mayor of Porto and Portuguese government as being homogeneous. Andy Burnham's brush with the UK government in late 2020 should tell you that a mayor's opinion is not reflective of a national government, who ultimately hold the aces. I don't think having 25% of our allocation being on official packages appeases anyone.

I will insulate myself from disappointment by expecting bad news but hoping for good news. UEFA have not earned the benefit of any doubt.
 
I think when many have already shelled out a small fortune for flights and accommodation, it’s advisable not to try and cut corners and get a test on the cheap so your suggestion is the best option.
Are the clinic based testing centres reliable for same day results? I’ve not done this yet but someone at work got stitched up before Christmas when he paid about £120 for a test where he had to send it off in the post and the results didn’t come back in time for his flight

Yeah, there were huge problems in December with postal tests and loads of people jetting off to the Canaries.
Seems some companies simply weren't ready or prepared and lots of people just didn't get their results back in time and ended up missing flights and losing holidays.

I don't think any company or clinic can 100% cast iron guarantee the results within a certain timeframe, but I'd certainly fancy my chances more with a clinic than with a postal test. I've not heard any clinic based horror stories (though I'm sure there are some) but I've read plenty of postal based test horror stories.

Most clinics will say if you have your test done by a certain time, then you'll get the results either the same day or the next day (depending on which service you have booked)

This is the one mentioned operating out of Hilton at Manchester airport, and also out of the Jurys Inn in the centre, offering various options. Pretty representative of most clinics up and down the country I'd say, in terms of time turnaround and price.

MHC Manchester | My Healthcare Clinic

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