Manchester United are preparing for the Europa League final against Tottenham next Wednesday.
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The Estadio de San Mames will host the final.(Image: 2025 UEFA)
The Basque Government is braced for thousands of Manchester United and Tottenham fans to travel to Bilbao.
The Europa League final against Tottenham will be played at the Estadio de San Mames on Wednesday. United are set to be supported by thousands of Mancunians who plan to make the trip to Bilbao again, but many of those will travel to the Basque Country without a ticket for the game.
Although the Estadio de San Mames has a capacity of just over 53,000 fans, just 29,000 tickets will go to supporters of United and Tottenham and the remaining tickets will be allocated elsewhere by UEFA.
Thousands of fans of United and Tottenham who don't have a ticket are expected to watch the game in the bars of Bilbao and there will be a mass police operation in place to ensure safety.
The security advisor for the Basque Government, Bingen Zupiria, has discussed the logistics of welcoming thousands of fans to the city and he admitted he was "nervous" ahead of the operation.
Speaking in an interview with SER Deportivos Bilbao, he explained: "We are constantly reviewing the operation. I won't hide the fact that I'm nervous; this job generates moments of anxiety."
Furthermore, the security advisor noted that UEFA, police from the United Kingdom and United and Tottenham are working with the Basque authorities to ensure a safe event.
The final is also set to require the "largest security deployment" in the history of the Basque Country, even surpassing the numbers they employed for the Tour de France in the summer of 2023.
Some United fans were forced to miss kick-off in the Europa League quarter-final first leg, which was in France against Lyon, and supporters encountered chaos when they tried to leave Fenerbahce's stadium in October.
The reports from fans who travelled to the Estadio de San Mames earlier this month for the semi-final were positive, though, and Athletic Bilbao and their supporters were praised for their hospitality.
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