Going to away matches in Spain isn’t anything like it is in England. For a start the distances are very often absolutely huge, even when on the mainland, and the football culture is such that clubs only take a small number with them.
Sunderland fans travelling to Southampton face a drive of over five hours, but Celta Vigo fans going to Malaga would face almost double that, and there are many more like that. Fans wanting to watch their team away at Las Pamas would face a 3 hour flight, but at least they’d get some sunshine.
Fans who do attend are then usually hidden away in a high corner of a stadium, and therefore the atmosphere is quite different to English football.
For European matches it’s different, with Spanish clubs often taking more fans overseas with them than attend domestic away matches.
However, there’s disappointment in Barcelona after the majority of tickets were returned for the match against Manchester City at the Etihad.
Barcelona were granted 2900 tickets, and have only managed to sell 750, with the rest being sent back to Manchester City. Catalan newspaper Mundo Deportivo say ‘what a disappointment’, and point out the club have taken far more supporters to Manchester previously.
Even Pep Guardiola’s presence on the opposing bench and the trip coinciding with a Spanish holiday hasn’t been enough to convince supporters to travel.
