From Stavanger to Istanbul, the eve of Tuesday’s Champions League fixtures has carried the old continental soundtrack: fireworks outside hotel walls, chants in the small hours, and visiting players left to find sleep wherever they can. Viking Stavanger’s first home match of this European campaign brings Bayern Munich to Norway, while Barcelona travel east to face Galatasaray in Turkey.
For Viking, still among the less experienced clubs in the Champions League, the visit of Bayern is a landmark occasion. It will be only their second match in this season’s competition, and supporters gathered near the Bavarian side’s hotel from 1:30am Norwegian time, setting off repeated fireworks in an attempt to disturb the visitors before kick-off.
The scenes have prompted a mixed response online, with some questioning the value of such efforts for a League Phase fixture and others predicting that Bayern will still prove far too strong. Yet the occasion remains a significant one for the Stavanger club: a first home night in the competition and an immediate meeting with one of Europe’s most formidable travelling sides.
A noisier night in Istanbul
Barcelona’s stay in Turkey has brought an even more intense version of the same ritual. Galatasaray supporters assembled outside the Catalan club’s hotel at 2:20am, combining a larger volume of fireworks with sustained singing aimed at disrupting Barcelona’s preparations.
The meeting carries its own recent European memory. Galatasaray and Barcelona have previously met in the Europa League, but this return in Istanbul comes on a Champions League matchday and under the particular pressure that accompanies a night at the Turkish club’s home ground.
Both fixtures are scheduled for 1:00pm Central Mexico time. Viking against Bayern Munich will be shown on Fox and the Fox One app, while Galatasaray versus Barcelona is available through TNT and HBO Max.
