San Mames cannot host the Copa del Rey final

The Copa del Rey final will take place on May 27 but the destination for the showpiece is as yet unknown, with only one stadium publicly wanting to host the match.

Atletico Madrid's Estadio Vicente Calderon has been a willing venue for some time given the capital club's imminent move to the Wanda-Metropolitano, although Barcelona would prefer the larger capacity Estadio Santiago Bernabeu.

On the other side of the coin, however, is Alaves. Entering their first-ever Copa final, the Basque club had hoped to play the game at Athletic Club's San Mames, although that seems impossible.

The Bilbao arena is jointly-owned by Athletic, Bilbao City Council, Diputacion Foral de Bizkaia, Basque Government and Kutxabank.

So far, Los Leones are yet to speak on the matter given the Provincial and City councils' preference to not host the match, in the face of Kutxabank and the Basque government's advocation to give Alaves a helping hand by bringing the final to the Basque Country.

However, the matter appears to have been settled before it could have brewed into a genuine disagreement, as May 30, three days after the fixture, will see US rock band Guns N Roses play San Mames.

'A concert sponsored by the Provincial authority, Diputacion Foral de Bizkaia, the arena will require five full days to prepare for the show.

Therefore, a Bilbao final would require the Copa showpiece to be moved to midweek, a compromise that will be almost impossible to meet.