Maccabi Tel Aviv will use the 'Spyros Kyprianou' indoor arena in Limassol for its home games in this year's EuroLeague, the President of the Cyprus Sports Organisation (CSO), Yiannis Ioannou, has announced.
A meeting and inspection of the arena took place on the morning of 6 October, attended by representatives from the CSO, the Police, the Israeli team, and the arena authorities.
Speaking to the Cyprus News Agency (CNA) on Tuesday, Ioannou said that the Presidency of the Republic, the Police, and the CSO confirmed to the EuroLeague that the arena could be used by the Israeli team for the competition, with the relevant letter from the organisation sent last Friday, 2 October. He added that the final announcement is expected from the organising body itself.
He also noted that, following the recent renovation for EuroBasket, the arena is ready for use, while the installation of specialised equipment for the EuroLeague matches is the responsibility of the home team. According to Ioannou, Maccabi Tel Aviv’s first match at the Limassol stadium will take place on Thursday, 22 October, against Real Madrid.
Furthermore, competent sources told CNA that the security measures to be implemented are expected to be extremely strict to ensure everyone's safety.
They also said that the meeting began around 9am and lasted approximately an hour and a half. During the meeting, security-related issues were examined —among other things— such as how the stands would be segregated and how many tickets would be allocated to the fans of both teams.
The same sources added that a follow-up meeting on the matter is expected to be held approximately ten days before the match on 22 October.
(Source: CNA)
