Lithuanian champions FK Kauno Zalgiris will likely play their historic Champions League second qualifying round home leg away from their usual venue after renting the stadium for a Pitbull concert. The club, which secured a place in the second qualifying round by beating Kosovo's Dritam 3-2 (4-3 on aggregate) on Tuesday, now faces a scheduling conflict with the American rapper's show on 31 July at the 15,000-seater Darius and Girenas Stadium in Kaunas.
Unexpected Success Causes Clash
Zalgiris, best known as Lithuania's most decorated basketball franchise, had not anticipated advancing in Europe. The concert booking leaves them scrambling for an alternative venue for the second leg against Faroe Islands champions KI, scheduled for 28 or 29 July. The club attempted to swap the legs to play at home first, but this is unlikely due to Faroese national holidays (St Olav's Day on 28-29 July) and another Faroese club, HB, playing Motherwell in the Conference League on 30 July, straining local policing resources.
Instead, Zalgiris will likely move the match to Jonava, a town about 30km away, at a stadium holding just over 2,500 people. The prize money from advancing is around €1.7m.
Frustration from Coach and Officials
Head coach Zeljko Sopic expressed frustration after the game in Kosovo, complaining that the team must move "because of a concert by some dog or somebody," adding, "It's better I don't say anything about that. It is what it is."
Club chair Mantas Kalnietis told the Guardian that the club was aware of the potential clash but had hoped to play the first match at home. "For the stadium, concerts like this are a major source of revenue, and for the city's residents it's also a great time," Kalnietis said. "Ultimately the income generated strengthens our entire organisation, enabling us to build a better team and improve our chances of reaching the group stage. This will be the only concert at the stadium this summer, so we will not face this issue again in the later rounds this year."
Edgaras Stankevicius, president of the Lithuanian football federation, described the double booking as "really unfortunate," adding, "Jonava stadium is nice and tidy as well, but it is still a big difference. It is normal to want to play these big games in your home stadium. Situations like these certainly do not do any good for the development of Lithuanian football as a whole."
Pitbull's Tour and Record
Pitbull will be in Kaunas as part of his European "I'm back!" tour, fresh off beating the Guinness world record for the "largest gathering of people wearing bald caps" at his London show last week. The concert at Darius and Girenas Stadium is the only one scheduled at the venue this summer.
