Thousands of empty seats were spotted at the Olympic Stadium in Baku.GETTY IMAGES
The Azerbaijan FA blamed Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt fans for "the number of unsold seats" at Wednesday's Europa League final in Baku. An official attendance of 51,370 was recorded for Chelsea's 4-1 win over Arsenal, "around 10,000 below the 62,000 capacity for the game." Azerbaijan FA General Secretary Elkhan Mammadov insisted he was "pleased with the turnout." He said, "The majority of empty seats were Frankfurt fans who purchased the tickets earlier but did not make the final." Mammadov estimated "a split of 30,000 foreign fans and 22,000 locals inside the ground" (London DAILY MAIL, 5/30).
The scene "should have been an electric one." But despite the stakes, "the match was something of a snooze fest." Making matters worse was the fact that the venue, Baku Olympic Stadium, "is built to house more than just soccer, leaving a large amount of space between the fans and the action on the field" (BUSINESS INSIDER, 5/30).
Wednesday's match "should serve as a warning" to anyone who is still plotting to take European club games across the globe, because it will "only serve up more of these bland, soulless spectacles" (London TELEGRAPH, 5/30).
