The Netherlands have been given an early advantage ahead of their Euro 2024 semi-final showdown with England as they have reportedly been handed half the ticket allocation for the famous “yellow wall” stand at Borussia Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion.
The 25,000 capacity stand has proven to be intimidating for opposing players over the years as Dortmund fans have habitually created a yellow canvas.
And the Dutch fans will be given the opportunity to do the same thing with their orange colours after UEFA decided not to allocate any of the tickets to England.
According to The Times, the other half of the tickets in the stand have been put on general sale by tournament chiefs, which means some England fans could find themselves sitting there. But there will be no Barmy Army tribe in the stand and Dutch supporters will be able to create a scene of bright colour and deafening sound to rally behind their team.
Dutch fans have been out in force during Euro 2024 and have made a name for themselves by bouncing through the streets of Germany while performing their ‘links rechts’, or ‘left right’ ritual.
And they will be desperate to make their voices heard after inspiring their country to quarter-final victory over Turkey on Saturday evening.
The Netherlands went behind against Turkey 10 minutes before the interval as Samet Akaydin headed in.
But they drew level 20 minutes from time as Stefan de Vrij found the back of the net. And the Dutch side clinched victory when Mert Muldur turned the ball into his own net six minutes later.
The Netherlands have also defeated Romania and Poland at the tournament, but only finished third in their group following a draw against France and a defeat to Austria.
The Dutch FA have officially only been given 8,000 tickets for the semi-final, with the English FA handed the same number. But UEFA have sold a further 1,500 tickets to Netherlands supporters, with some online tickets being offered for as much as £680.
England booked a showdown against the Netherlands following their quarter-final victory over Switzerland on Saturday afternoon.
Gareth Southgate’s team also came from behind after Breel Embolo had opened the scoring after 70 minutes. But England hit back as Bukayo Saka curled in a superb shot from the edge of the box to force the match into extra time.
The Three Lions then held their nerve in a penalty shootout as Trent Alexander-Arnold coverted the winning kick.
