Tribuna Expresso: Great Games | The Minister of State for Sports said that the Portuguese Cup Final will not be available to the public

The Minister of State for Youth and Sports, Joao Paulo Rebelo, said today that the final match of the Portuguese soccer cup between Sporting de Braga and Benfica, which will be held on Sunday in Coimbra, will not have an audience.

João Paulo Rebelo said the government is not proposing that the public be allowed to attend the final, which will be held in Coimbra, as a kind of beta, similar to what it did in the final round of the tournament, a decision that rejected the Liga de clubs in the name of equality between clubs.

“No, at this point, no [o Governo não coloca essa hipótese]. The government has given the opportunity to conduct a batch of test runs at the end of the season to symbolize that the next test begins with a stadium crowd. The idea of ​​having an audience in the last round was only for the club that was visited, which would be clearly impossible to happen in the cup final, “he said, on the sidelines of the presentation of The Centennial Book – Sporting Club History De Braga.

Joao Paulo Rebelo said that this is a scenario that he did not present at the moment, and asked if it was possible, replying that “there will be no conditions for this to happen.”

He said, “Even because we were very clear in the opening match: It was me, Liga, in the last round and nothing was said about the Portuguese Cup Final.”

In response to a question about the audience’s presence in the Champions League final, at the Stade de Dragão, in Porto, between Manchester City and Chelsea, the official indicated that this was a “requirement” for the match until it came to Portugal.

“These are completely different circumstances. When it is known in which conditions these fans will come to our country, everyone will understand very well the extraordinary measures that will be taken. This was one of the requirements of UEFA, and it was on the table to organize or not through the possibility of getting an audience and taking it.” The government is a choice, “he explained.