The day has arrived. Nearly 4 weeks after the first leg, the final of the Copa Libertadores between Boca Juniors and River Plate is finally being played tonight in Madrid’s Santiago Bernabeu more than 6,000 miles away from River’s home where it was supposed to be played.
Boca have been appealing Conmebol’s decision to play the second leg believing they should’ve got the win after the attack on their coach before the game. On the other hand, River first challenged Conmebol’s decision to play in Madrid as they think the final has been taken away from their fans.
The players say hello to the fans! #VamosBoca #QueremosLa7ma
?@BocaJrsOficial pic.twitter.com/vgv6QRm9Sa
— Boca in English (@CABJ_English) 8 December 2018
Despite the anger from both sides for taking the final away from the continent due to violence, Argentine fans have travelled in numbers on a tight schedule to witness a historic final that might never happen again. To put it into perspective, this is game is set to have a bigger audience than the Manchester derby or El Clasico.
Locals in Madrid were worried due to the fact that both fans will be mixed up in the city and it could lead to more violence in the streets. Nearly 4,000 police officers for the ‘Superclasico’ will be tight to prevent any violence in the city.
Nonetheless, the fans that have been arriving in Madrid from all over the globe (25,000 expected per team) have been friendly and have taken over the city with the famous Argentine ‘Banderazos’ to give their team one last push before the final.
RIVER PLATE, RIVER PLATE ??#LaFuerzaDelMásGrande #VamosTodosUnidos ⚪?⚪ pic.twitter.com/TSN3kZ3oEj
— Identidad Monumental (@IdMonumental) 8 December 2018
For football fans in the UK, they can witness history on BT Sport 1HD from 7.15 or Free Sports tonight from 7.25 pm for a 7.30 Pm kick off in a game that has caught the eye of the planet for the history of these two teams as well as whats been happening off the pitch before the second leg.