LEIPZIG, Germany May 27 (Reuters) - A blend of joyous anticipation and community spirit gripped Leipzig on Wednesday as thousands of Crystal Palace and Rayo Vallecano fans gathered ahead of the UEFA Conference League final, the first meeting between the two clubs.
Palace and Vallecano both have reached their maiden UEFA final in only their second continental campaign after 120 and 102 years of existence respectively, backed by deeply rooted, close-knit communities.
Palace's sole prior European appearance was in the defunct 1998 UEFA Intertoto Cup. Rayo’s only previous campaign ended in 2001 at the UEFA Cup quarter-finals against Spanish rivals Alaves.
Many Palace supporters chose to bypass the official UEFA-designated fan zone, opting instead to gather in local beer gardens. Meanwhile, the Rayo fan zone was a sea of red and white, filled with families soaking in the warm weather.
"I am just trying to enjoy every single second," said Angel Linares, 60, a Rayo season ticket holder since 1981 who travelled to Germany with his wife and son. "An experience like this is very, very unlikely to ever happen to us again."
Despite reported clashes between ultra groups on Tuesday, hundreds of rival fans mingled cordially. Many noted their commonalities as modest teams from working-class districts in the south of their respective capital cities, London and Madrid.
The celebratory mood follows a dramatic week for the Spanish contingent. Supporters recently launched a crowdfunding campaign after scammers used AI-generated posters in Madrid to swindle 14 fans out of 250 euros ($291) each for a non-existent bus trip.
First-team players stepped in to assist the drive, which raised enough money within hours to book the victims onto charter flights to Germany.
"Thank you to the anonymous Rayistas (nickname for Rayo fans) who helped and thank you to the best squad in our history, who proved their commitment to fans," a local fan group said in a statement.
($1 = 0.8586 euros)
(Writing and additional reporting by Tommy Lund in GdanskEditing by Christian Radnedge)
