Tickets for the 2017 Fifa Club World Cup went on general sale on Monday, as UAE football fans seek to catch a glimpse of Real Madrid in the Emirates later this year.
The tournament, which takes place from December 6-16, features the recently crowned European champions after they defeated Juventus in the Uefa Champions League final earlier this month.
Madrid, who won last year’s Club World Cup, will headline the event, hosted in the UAE for the third time following largely successful tournaments in 2009 and 2010. New Zealand’s Auckland City and Mexico’s Pachuca have also been confirmed, while UAE champions Al Jazira have provisionally booked their place at the seven-team event.
Tickets had been available to Visa cardholders for the past two weeks, with the general public then able to purchase seats for the eight matches from lunchtime on Monday. Games will be played at Abu Dhabi’s Zayed Sports City and the Hazza bin Zayed Stadium in Al Ain.
“Following a three-month build-up since the official emblem launch in April, we have seen overwhelming demand for tickets during the Visa pre-sale and participation in the Fifa Club World Experience and Excitement roadshows,” said Aref Al Awani, tournament director of the Local Organising Committee (LOC). “We encourage everyone to buy their tickets before they sell out and watch their favourite team compete for the title in the UAE this December.”
Madrid will undoubtedly represent the biggest draw and enter the tournament at the semi-final stage, with the match taking place in the capital on Wednesday December 13. The Spanish club clinched their place at the event on June 3, when they dispatched Juventus 4-1 at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium to lift a record 12th European Cup. Their third title in four years, it completed a Primera Liga and Champions League double.
Cristiano Ronaldo, whose future with the club has been the subject of much speculation this past week, scored twice in the final to conclude the competition with 12 goals. The Portuguese forward knows the Club World Cup well having netted a hat-trick in the 2016 showpiece to help Madrid defeat Japan’s Kashima Antlers in Yokohama.
“The LOC is delighted that Uefa Champions League winners Real Madrid have secured their spot in the Fifa Club World Cup UAE 2017 and we look forward to welcoming them to the UAE,” Al Awani said. “Real Madrid are the world’s most successful team in history and this year Ronaldo has been crowned as top goalscorer and Zinedine Zidane the first coach to win the Champions League for a second year in a row.”
There are a variety of ticket types for the UAE event, with Category 1, 2 and 3 seating available. Corporate hospitality and private boxes are also available upon request, with tournament travel packages on sale for fans from outside the UAE. For more information, visit http://www.fifa.com/clubworldcup/index.html.
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