'Cadena SER' and 'AS' reported that the Copa del Rey final between Real Sociedad and Athletic Bilbao will be called off due to the coronavirus situation. At just after 6pm CET, the Spanish FA (RFEF) confirmed the news.
The Copa del Rey final will not be played on Saturday 18th April, the RFEF has confirmed. The RFEF have decided to postpone the fixture due to the ongoing coronavirus situation. Just a few hours before it was officially suspended, 'Cadena SER' and 'AS' had said that the final would be postponed.
Real Sociedad and Athletic were going to play at the La Cartuja Stadium in five weeks time. However, according to the cited source, an agreement has been reached to postpone the match. The head of the Spanish FA, Luis Rubiales, explained the decision: "We have agreed (with the two clubs) that we have to try and make sure this final takes place with people in the stands, in a Cartuja which is full to the brim," at the same time ruling out a closed doors final on 18th April.
Since the amount of people testing positive for coronavirus in Spain increased, the RFEF have been looking for a new date for the Real Sociedad versus Athletic Bilbao match. The
The date could be Saturday 30th May, a week after the end of the La Liga season, providing La Liga is not halted because of the Coronavirus.
That said, 'AS' says that the rock band 'Extremoduro' are playing a concert that day at La Cartuja so that would have to be moved possibly to Real Betis' Benito Villamarin stadium.
The other issue is that 30th May is the day the Champions League final is due to take place. Therefore, 'IuSport' and 'Sport' say that Sunday 31st May is a more likely date for the final.
That day, the final of the Copa de la Reina (the women's version of the Copa del Rey) is due to be held at La Rosaleda stadium in Malaga so that could also be altered if the Copa del Rey final is played on 31st May.
No new date has been set for the final, but it will be decided next week.