Football: Portugal relaxes Covid rules for English fans at Champions League final

PORTO, PORTUGAL (REUTERS, AFP) - Portuguese authorities have relaxed Covid-19 safety rules for thousands of English fans coming to Porto for Saturday's (May 29) Champions League final, no longer requiring them to stay in bubbles and lifting restrictions on movement.

Portugal reopened its borders to tourists from Britain and the European Union some 10 days ago.

"The borders are open. The city and the country are opening up little by little. Within what is possible, freedom (of movement) will not be conditioned," Porto police superintendent Cardoso da Silva told a news briefing on Thursday.

"There are no restrictions of movement for fans."

With the approval of the local authorities, Uefa has issued 16,500 tickets for the game at the Dragon stadium, a third of its capacity. Both clubs have been allocated 6,000 tickets, and 1,700 tickets were made available to the general public. The rest will be distributed by Uefa.

However, with only two days to go until Manchester City play Chelsea for the ultimate club prize in European football, Silva said the contingency plan in place was under constant re-evaluation and could still undergo some alterations.

A police source told Reuters that Portuguese authorities did not have enough time to fully prepare for the final as Uefa announced it would move the event to Porto from Istanbul only two weeks ago.

The police did not specify how many officers would be on duty but the force will be "robust", said Silva, indicating that they will be distributed in three hot spots - the stadium, the city centre and the airport.

Traffic restrictions will be imposed in three perimeters around the stadium, to which ticketed fans will be transported, and fan zones are expected to be set up in the city, although details of how they will be organised have not yet been decided.

Eight British police officers specialised in dealing with football fans are in Portugal and will work with Portuguese police to help ensure public order.

London Metropolitan Police Superintendent Lysander Strong, who is in Portugal to coordinate the operation between the two forces, said the two clubs had sent recommendations to fans to follow social distancing rules and wear a mask.

Since May 17, British visitors have been allowed into Portugal with proof of a negative PCR test result.

Silva said that around 80 charter flights with English fans were expected to land on Saturday for the clash between r City and Chelsea. Around 180 buses will take fans to the stadium.

Under rules previously announced by the Portuguese government, passengers were to fly back within 24 hours. But police spokesman Marco Almeida said that now they can stay longer if they choose not to take scheduled return flights.