A giant fanzone to capture all the upcoming action at Wembley has been announced for Newcastle as excitement builds ahead of the final.
What's billed as the 'ultimate fanzone' for Newcastle United's cup final match will be taking shape in the city to bring the action to the big screen - and tickets are already on sale. Adding to the big screen football programme will be live music by local favourite Andrew Cushin and comedy from Gavin Webster.
The EFL Cup Fanzone will be in Domain, Northumbria University’s largest events venue which can cater for 1,800 people standing. It will be offering options such as VIP seating but capacity at the campus venue on Ellison Place is still expected to be more than 1,400 and it is promising "to offer the ultimate experience" for those who can't make it to Wembley on the big day, February 26.
Read more: Newcastle United at Wembley: How to get there by train, bus, plane or car
For stay-home fans, it will be adding to the buzz in the city which reached a frenzy on Tuesday night when Newcastle United's 2-1 win over Southampton at St James' Park paved the team's way to its first major final in 24 years. Now, in the League Cup Final the Magpies will face old foes Manchester United.
On their last Wembley outing, it was a late Guy Poyet goal in the semi-final against Chelsea that brought misery to the team and then-manager Bobby Robson. But there are now high hopes again all around for fans who have stuck by the club and are now loving its run of success.
Anthony Thompson, who is a lead promoter for the fanzone, said: "As a lifelong Newcastle fan who also runs a live music events company, I was always hoping for a chance to combine the two. But, as we all know, those chances have been few and far between.
“The city has been buzzing since the takeover, and it's been a pleasure to watch Newcastle go from strength to strength. As Newcastle advanced further in the cup, we began toying with the idea of implementing a Fanzone."
He added: “Now that we've made the final, we can finally put all of our plans into action and deliver a live music event and football screening that the entire city can be proud of." The action will play out on a 10ft by 7ft screen accompanied by top sound quality.
He said he is "overjoyed" at having the before and post-match entertainment too, featuring singer-songwriter Cushin, plus band, and local comic Webster, who has appeared at Edinburgh Fringe Festival and on TV's Never Mind the Buzzcocks and The Stand-up Show.
To book tickets for the fanzone, which cost from £19.50 with VIP balcony seating available for £25, see here. Drinks deals also will be available.
And offering even more choice for football fans on the day of the Carabao Cup Final, will be another city fanzone. Organisers behind Central Park have joined forces with NX Newcastle club - which previously have both hosted popular fanzones - to show the match live on the big screen at Times Square. Keep an eye out here for further updates.
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