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|stadium=[[Wembley Stadium]], [[London]]
|stadium=[[Wembley Stadium]], [[London]]
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==See also==
==See also==

Revision as of 22:01, 4 May 2011

2011 UEFA Champions League Final
Event2010–11 UEFA Champions League
Date28 May 2011
VenueWembley Stadium, London
2010
2012

The 2011 UEFA Champions League Final will be the final match of the 2010–11 UEFA Champions League the 56th season of the UEFA Champions League football tournament, and the 19th in the Champions League era. The match will be played on 28 May 2011 at Wembley Stadium in London, England,[1] which will be hosting its first European Cup final (although five were held at the old Wembley Stadium, in 1963, 1968, 1971, 1978 and 1992).[2]

The match will be contested by Barcelona of Spain and Manchester United for the second time in three years. Barcelona defeated rivals Real Madrid 3–1 on aggregate in the semi-finals to make it through, while Manchester United qualified after a 6–1 aggregate win over Schalke 04.

The winners will play against the winners of the 2011 UEFA Europa League Final in the 2011 UEFA Super Cup in Monaco in August 2011, and also enter the semi-finals of the 2011 FIFA Club World Cup in December of that year.

Background

The original Wembley Stadium hosted five European Cup finals prior to 2011. The 1968 and 1978 finals were both won by English sides: Manchester United beat Benfica 4–1 in 1968 and Liverpool defeated Club Brugge 1–0 in 1978. Benfica also lost in the 1963 final, beaten 2–1 by Milan, while Ajax won the first of three consecutive European Cups at Wembley in 1971, beating Panathinaikos 2–0. In the 1992 final, Spanish club Barcelona defeated Italian side Sampdoria 1–0 in the final match played as the European Cup prior to the following season's introduction of the current Champions League format.

First opened for the British Empire Exhibition in 1923, the stadium was originally known as the Empire Stadium. That year, it hosted its first FA Cup Final, when almost 200,000 spectators attempted to watch the match between Bolton Wanderers and West Ham United. Wembley played host to all of England's matches at the 1966 FIFA World Cup, including the 4–2 victory over West Germany in the final, and at UEFA Euro 1996. The original stadium was closed in 2000 and demolished three years later, to be replaced by a 90,000-capacity arena, which opened in 2007.[2]

Road to London

Barcelona Round Manchester United
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
Spain Barcelona 6 4 2 0 14 3 +11 14
Denmark Copenhagen 6 3 1 2 7 5 +2 10
Russia Rubin Kazan 6 1 3 2 2 4 −2 6
Greece Panathinaikos 6 0 2 4 2 13 −11 2
Group stage
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
England Manchester United 6 4 2 0 7 1 +6 14
Spain Valencia 6 3 2 1 15 4 +11 11
Scotland Rangers 6 1 3 2 3 6 −3 6
Turkey Bursaspor 6 0 1 5 2 16 −14 1
Opponent Result Legs Knockout phase Opponent Result Legs
England Arsenal 4–3 1–2 away; 3–1 home First knockout round France Marseille 2–1 0–0 away; 2–1 home
Ukraine Shakhtar Donetsk 6–1 5–1 home; 1–0 away Quarter-finals England Chelsea 3–1 1–0 away; 2–1 home
Spain Real Madrid 3–1 2–0 away; 1–1 home Semi-finals Germany Schalke 04 6–1 2–0 away; 4–1 home

Pre-match

Venue

Inside Wembley Stadium

Wembley Stadium was selected as the venue for the 2011 UEFA Champions League Final at a meeting of the UEFA Executive Committee in Nyon, Switzerland, on 29 January 2009.[3] Other stadia in contention to host the final included the Allianz Arena in Munich and Berlin's Olympiastadion.[4] The Allianz Arena will instead host the 2012 final.[3] The weekend set aside by UEFA for the 2011 Champions League Final was originally scheduled by The Football League as the date for the Football League play-off finals, which are traditionally held on the British May bank holiday weekend; however, due to UEFA's requirement that they be given exclusive use of the venue in the lead-up to the final, the play-off finals had to be relocated. Due to this breach of their contract with The Football Association, The Football League demanded compensation.[5] On 21 January 2011, as part of a settlement agreement with the FA, the League One and League Two play-off finals were moved to Old Trafford, Manchester, to be played respectively on 29 May and 28 May 2011; the Championship play-off final was not rescheduled.[6][7] The Conference National play-off final was also moved to Manchester, to be played at the City of Manchester Stadium on 21 May 2011.[8]

UEFA's ambassador for the 2011 Champions League Final is former Tottenham Hotspur forward Gary Lineker. In his first duty as ambassador, on 26 August 2010, Lineker helped to conduct the draw for the group stage of the competition.[9] Lineker was later involved in the unveiling of the branding design for the 2011 final at an event at Wembley Stadium on 25 November 2010. Hosted by Sky Sports presenter Richard Keys, the event was also attended by UEFA competitions director Giorgio Marchetti, former British Minister for Sport and representative of the City of London Kate Hoey, General Secretary of The Football Association Alex Horne, and England Women's international Faye White. The logo for the final is in the style of a heraldic crest and features the European Champion Clubs' Cup in the centre, flanked by two lions. According to the designers of the logo, London-based Radiant Studios, the lions are intended to represent the two teams that will contest the final, battling over the trophy. The use of traditional elements in a contemporary style in the design is said to have been inspired by modern British designers such as Vivienne Westwood and tailors on Savile Row.[10][11]

Ticketing

Although Wembley Stadium can usually hold up to 90,000 spectators, the net capacity for the 2011 Champions League final will be approximately 86,000. The two teams that reach the final will be allocated 25,000 tickets each, while a further 11,000 tickets were put on general sale. The application period for those tickets opened on 24 February 2011 and closed at 17:00 GMT on 18 March, with recipients to be determined by a random ballot before 6 April.[12][13]

A ticket launch event was held at London's City Hall on 17 February 2011, at which the above ticketing process was explained. The event was also used to promote the start of ticket sales, and was attended by final ambassador Gary Lineker, his women's final counterpart Hope Powell, UEFA Champions Festival ambassador Graeme Le Saux, UEFA fourth vice-president Marios N. Lefkaritis, and vice-chairman of The Football Association Barry Bright. Le Saux and Powell were presented with the first symbolic tickets for the final by four local schoolchildren.[14]

Match ball

As with the previous ten UEFA Champions League finals, beginning with the 2001 final, the match ball will be provided by German sports equipment company Adidas. Revealed on 3 March 2011 at Wembley Stadium, the Adidas Finale London features the "Starball" design synonymous with the UEFA Champions League. In reflection of the St George's Cross seen on the flag of England, the ball itself is white with red stars, connecting to a central, bright orange star. Technically, the ball shares its structure with the Adidas Finale Madrid, which was used for the 2010 final.[15]

Opening ceremony

The 2011 Champions League final will officially open on 21 May 2011 with the opening of the 2011 UEFA Champions Festival at Speakers' Corner in Hyde Park, London. The festival will run for the entire week leading up to the showpiece match at Wembley, closing a few hours before kick-off. Among the attractions at the festival will be displays detailing the history of the European Cup, miniature football pitches for use by the public, and the trophy itself.[16]

Match

Details

See also

References

  1. ^ "UEFA announces 2011 and 2012 final venues". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 29 January 2009. Retrieved 27 November 2010.
  2. ^ a b "Wembley returns to centre stage". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 30 January 2009. Retrieved 24 March 2010.
  3. ^ a b "UEFA unveil 2011 and 2012 final venues". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 29 January 2009. Retrieved 23 March 2010.
  4. ^ "Wembley to host 2011 Euro final". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 29 January 2009. Retrieved 29 January 2009.
  5. ^ "Football League seek compensation after Wembley is double-booked". Times Online. Times Newspapers. 24 February 2009. Retrieved 12 September 2009.
  6. ^ "Old Trafford to host League One and Two play-off finals". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 21 January 2011. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
  7. ^ "Play-Offs head North". football-league.co.uk. The Football League. 21 January 2011. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
  8. ^ "Blue Square Bet Premier final moves to Manchester". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 24 September 2010. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
  9. ^ "Lineker embarks on ambassador role". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 26 August 2010. Retrieved 25 February 2011.
  10. ^ Adams, Sam (25 November 2010). "Event design launch sharpens Wembley focus". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 25 February 2011.
  11. ^ "VIDEO: Champions League logo revealed". TheFA.com. The Football Association. 25 November 2010. Retrieved 25 February 2011.
  12. ^ "Wembley final tickets set to go on sale". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 17 February 2011. Retrieved 26 February 2011.
  13. ^ "UEFA Champions League final ticket sales over". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 18 March 2011. Retrieved 20 March 2011.
  14. ^ Ashby, Kevin (17 February 2011). "London ticket launch event brings final closer". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 26 February 2011.
  15. ^ Haslam, Andrew (3 March 2011). "Finale London unveiled at Wembley". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 20 March 2011.
  16. ^ "Hyde Park to host Champions Festival". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 25 February 2011. Retrieved 26 February 2011.

External links

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