UEFA Super Cup Final Wednesday sees Freedom Square going football crazy
The UEFA Super Cup, to be played in Tallinn on Wednesday, 15 August, will see Freedom Square (Vabaduse Väljak) in central Tallinn transformed into a hotspot of related activities, events and performances.
The 43rd UEFA Super Cup, to be played between the winners of the Champions' League, the premier European club football competition, and its second tier counterpart, the Europa League, kicks off at 21.00 EEST at the A. le Coq Arena on Wednesday, 15 August.
The competing teams this year are local Madrid rivals, Real Madrid, Champions' League winners for 2018 and Atlético Madrid, who won the Europa League.
Real
Real's squad reads like a who's who of global stars of the game: Tony Kroos of Germany (midfield), Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who featured in Belgium's World Cup campaign, reaching the semi-finals, and several Spanish national team players such as captian Sergio Ramos, Isco, Nacho and Dani Carvajal, World Cup medal winner, stiker Karim Benzema of France as well as Welsh striker and erstwhile world' most expensive player Gareth Bale are all on the roster, and at least some will be playing on Wednesday.
Atlético
Midfielder and World Cup finalist Luca Modrić of Croatia, who is a Real player, will reportedly not be appearing, although his countryman, striker Nikola Kalinić, should be making a start for Atlético.
Other big names on the Atlético side include striker and World Cup finalist Antoine Griezmann of France, and Spanish striker Diego Costa, who also played a few seasons for Chelsea.
Freedom square events
According to a Tallinn City Council press release, Freedom Square will see plenty of attractions on 14 and 15 August, including a UEFA stand, mini-football contests, a mobile studio from ERR's Raadio 2, and stands and attractions organised by official sponsors Playstation, Nissan, Pepsi, Lays and Heineken.
Fun events and competitions taking place include quizzes and games, with a chance to win tickets to the Super Cup (tickets were on sale via the UEFA site and allocated by lottery).
There will also be performances from Estonian pop starlet Liis Lemsalu (at 20.00 on 15 August) and electronic duo Púr Múdd (at 21.00 on 14 August), it is reported.
''The preparations for the event have been going on for more than a year,'' said Tallinn Deputy Mayor Vadim Belobrovtsev. The cooperation agreement to host the game was signed in June 2017.
The game itself will be live streamed and is reportedly likely to attract around 50 million viewers.
Freedom Square is often used for various sporting, cultural and other events. During this year's World Cup finals, a large screen was erected for viewing games.
Editor: Andrew Whyte
Source: Tallinn City Council