The Europa League champs are set to play against the UEFA Champions League victors on August 14, Wednesday at the new Besiktas stadium in Istanbul, Turkey. Chelsea will play Liverpool for the Super Cup crown.
The Blues have played three previous Super Cup games. In the 1998 edition, Chelsea defeated Real Madrid 1-0 in Monaco. However, in 2012 and 2013, Chelsea lost their games against Atletico Madrid in Monaco and to Bayern Munich in Prague respectively.
For Liverpool, this Super Cup will be their sixth. The Reds won the 1997, 2001 and 2005 Super Cups, but lost in the 1978 and 1984 editions.
This year’s match will also mark the first time that two English clubs will vie for the UEFA Super Cup trophy. It also marks the return of English clubs in the Super Cup since 2005, where the Reds defeated CSKA Moscow.
This year’s UEFA Super Cup will also be the eighth time that two sides coming from the same country will fight for the crown. In 1990, AC Milan faced fellow Italian club Sampdoria. And in 1993, Serie A’s side AC Milan played against another Italian club, Parma. In 2006, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2018, the tournaments were an All-Spanish club cup, as La Liga giants Sevilla fought another Spanish club, Barcelona, followed by Real Madrid vs Sevilla, Barcelona against Sevilla, Real Madrid v Sevilla, and Atletico Madrid going up against Real Madrid respectively.
Liverpool qualified for the Super Cup after winning the Champions League final against Tottenham Hotspur 2-0. The Stamford Bridge side, on the other hand, beat Arsenal with a resounding 4-1 victory.
Chelsea FC have never played in the Besiktas Stadium. Their record in Istanbul stands at 1 win, a draw and a loss.
The winner of this year’s UEFA Super Cup will represent Europe in the upcoming Club World Cup in December. The host and venue of the Club World Cup will be announced shortly.
