Having four Premier League teams in the two European footie finals is unprecedented.
And it’s putting an unprecedented strain on travel for the supporters.
Getting to Madrid for the June 1 Champions League clash between Tottenham and Liverpool (disclaimer: Reds fan for 50-plus years) is one thing, travelling to distant Azerbaijan for Chelsea and Arsenal’s Europa League showdown on May 29 is quite another.
It’s 2,500 miles from London.
There are few direct flights around the time of the game in Baku (and they look to be full) so it’ll be via cities such as Kiev and from eight to 16 hours each way.
Train will take at least four-and-a-half days – and driving would be 57 hours, not including overnight stops.
Up to 100,000 Spurs and Reds fans are likely to head to the Spanish capital for the Champions League final.
Flight prices have shot up (I saw a £1,192 return for what is usually £145).
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But there may be a money-saving solution if you can take a week off.
You could book a holiday from, say, May 28, on the costas around Alicante and Valencia.
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On Friday I found seven-day self-catering and B&B hols from £172 per person with flights from Gatwick, and £274pp from Leeds.
There are regular express trains from Alicante and Valencia to Madrid.
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*Website searches were with onthebeach.co.uk , icelolly.com and loveholidays.com . Prices based on two adults sharing and correct at time of writing and subject to change
