United building the perfect stage

By Paddy Harverson, Communications Director, Manchester United FC

Hosting the UEFA Champions League final is a great honour for everyone at Manchester United FC, but there is no denying that the huge amount of work that goes into preparing for club football's flagship event has proved a real test for everyone at Old Trafford.

Marathon runners
Having won the Premiership title after a particularly long and arduous championship race – with Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup fixtures as well, United ended up playing a record 33 home games at Old Trafford between August and May – extending the season by another two weeks makes us feel like marathon runners who, after crossing the finishing line first, are told to run another kilometre!

Massive team banners
However, as the big day approaches the excitement has been building and the energy levels rising. At Old Trafford last Friday you would have come across a very brave man suspended 30 metres above the ground, attaching two massive team banners – one for AC Milan and one for Juventus FC – to the top of the East Stand.

Hammering and sawing
Below him workmen are putting up new signs everywhere, while inside the ground the pitch is being lovingly tended to a background of hammering and sawing, as the desk-tops are installed for the expanded press box in the South Stand that will house the 2,000-plus members of the media.

'Theatre of Football'
Elsewhere an army of people are working behind the scenes on converting the Theatre of Dreams into UEFA's 'Theatre of Football' for one special night. Almost every one of United's 495 full-time staff has been working on readying the stadium for the match, and many of the 1,600 part-time employees who normally work at Old Trafford on a matchday will be on duty for the final.

One of world's largest marquees
One of the busiest departments will be catering, where 900 United staff will be serving 3,500 meals on Wednesday evening. That does not include the 400 people who will be serving 4,000 guests in the enormous marquee that has been erected behind the North Stand. The marquee is one of the largest in the world, with dimensions that almost exactly match those of the Old Trafford pitch.

Festival Europa
But it is not just the club that is readying itself for the big day. The city of Manchester is marking its hosting of the final with the Festival Europa – a mix of entertainment, sporting events, live music concerts, performance arts and open-air markets spread across the city centre in celebration of all things European.

Barge to Old Trafford
The city's transport infrastructure will also be operating at peak levels on the day of the game, with fans getting to the stadium by car, bus, train, and tram. Visitors can even travel to the game on water. The Manchester Ship Canal snakes its way through the city's old industrial heartland all the way to Old Trafford, and supporters can slowly chug their way to the game on a barge while enjoying the scenery and the hospitality of the boats' bars.

Around 900 flights
Unsurprisingly, Manchester Airport is bracing for one of the busiest days in its history. Over 28 and 29 May it will handle some 900 aircraft landings and take-offs, almost double the number for a typical day. An additional 500 airport staff have been drafted in to handle the fans as they arrive, with 600 coaches standing by to ferry the Italian supporters to the stadium and back.

No time to rest
And when it is all over, the marquees, signs, banners and scaffolding will all be packed up and sent home, leaving Old Trafford to prepare for its next big event: a rock concert for 50,000 people featuring American superstars Bon Jovi. And some people think summertime at a football club is quiet!