The answer to the question asked by numerous fans: Nowhere else in Austria is a European Cup game more difficult to organize than in the relatively small area of the NV Arena. The requirements of UEFA are extremely strict. The so-called “red zones” were no longer accessible to anyone except the two clubs and UEFA representatives.
While this is easily possible in Klagenfurt, for example, numerous subtenants share the area with the St. Pölten sports center, the SKN St. Pölten and the ÖFB. At the beginning of the pandemic, at that time still without a spectator, LASK very quickly rejected the plan last season. Before this year’s start of the group phase in the summer, however, they were much further along. For example, money was taken to draw up an expert opinion on floodlight suitability for UEFA. But then it turned out that the lawn will be changed in the summer. “It would never have worked out, we would not have received approval from UEFA either,” says LASK Managing Director Andreas Protil. In the end, at the beginning of the season not even the host St. Pölten could use the stadium, they had to switch to Wiener Neustadt. Now it finally works. Protil: “It’s still a challenge, the space is really limited, we have to set up a separate tent for the media, for example, to meet UEFA requirements. But we wanted to offer the fans a real European Cup atmosphere.” That will definitely be the case today thanks to the 5000 tickets already sold.
Source: Nachrichten
