Two Baltic clubs will be forced to play their upcoming European home matches away from their usual stadiums because of concerts.
While Estonian clubs Paide Linnameeskond and Nõmme Kalju have already had to stage their European home fixtures in Pärnu because their own stadiums do not meet UEFA requirements, Lithuanian champions Kauno Žalgiris and Latvian side Liepāja have encountered a different set of problems.
Fresh from eliminating Kosovo champions Drita 4-3 on aggregate to reach the second qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League, Kauno Žalgiris had to find some solutions as they will not be able to host Faroese champions KI Klaksvik at the Darius and Girenas Stadium in Kaunas.
The home match against KÍ, scheduled for 29 July, will instead be played at Jonava Stadium because the Darius and Girėnas Stadium is being prepared for Pitbull’s concert on 31 July, leaving the venue unavailable for European football.
Head coach Željko Sopic did not hide his frustration after learning of the situation.
“The least we could do after the match was give our shirts to the supporters. They backed us unbelievably, from the youngest to the oldest. I hope they will support us in our home match as well. We already know we won’t be playing in our own stadium because of some dog’s concert… I’d better not say anything more about it. It is what it is. We’ll prepare for the next match, but we can only win if we stay first in the Lithuanian league, which is my main objective this year.”
Liepāja face a similar problem in Latvia. After progressing to the second qualifying round of the UEFA Conference League with a 3-1 aggregate victory over Montenegrin side Dečic, the club will host Austrian side Austria Wien at Sloka Stadium in Jūrmala rather than at Daugava Stadium in Liepāja.
The first leg will be played on 23 July, with the return match in Vienna a week later.
The relocation is the result of preparations for Prāta Vētra’s concert on 18 July, which have significantly damaged the playing surface at Daugava Stadium in Liepāja.
“The pitch is damaged,” club representative Dāvids Jansons explained. “It is so badly damaged that there are even doubts about whether we will be able to play there again this season.”
Rīga’s Daugava Stadium was also considered as an alternative venue before the club ultimately selected Sloka Stadium.
