Champions League giants qualify for Europe after Harry Styles forced club into rival stadium

Ajax overcame a scheduling snafu involving Harry Styles to avoid a first season without European football since 1966.

The Dutch giants booked their spot in next season’s Conference League thanks to a penalty shootout win over Utrecht in the Eredivisie’s European play-offs.

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Ajax finished fifth in the Dutch top flight, which meant they were the top seed going into the season-ending tournament.

That gave them the benefit of hosting the semi-final against Gronigen, which they won 2-0.

Where did Ajax play their European play-off matches?

However, Ajax were unable to play at the Johan Cruyff Arena, their home ground which seats over 55,000 supporters.

Instead, Ajax had to play at the Kras Stadion, the home of FC Volendam.

To underline the drastic gap in facilities on offer, the Kras Stadion holds less than 7,000 people.

So, why did Ajax have to play their European play-off games at a rival’s ground that is only a 30-minute drive away?

You’re so golden, Ajax

Enter Styles.

Styles, a three-time Grammy winner, has ten concert dates at the Johan Cruyff Arena.

The former One Direction member began his run of gigs in Amsterdam on May 16 and wraps up the Dutch leg of his tour on June 5.

Due to the potential profits on offer from Styles, Ajax prioritised the concerts rather than the revenue generated from up to two play-off games.

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Unable to play at their home ground due to the preparation required for Styles’ concerts, Ajax had to turn to FC Volendam, who will compete in the Dutch second tier after losing the relegation play-off to Willem II via penalty shootout.

Ajax had little trouble getting past Gronigen in the European play-off semi-final courtesy of goals from Davy Klaassen and Jorthy Mokio.

The Amsterdam outfit had a far trickier task in the final against Utrecht, as their contest finished 1-1 after extra time.

But the four-time European champions showed their pedigree during the penalty shootout as they converted all their attempts, with Ajax gloveman Maarten Paes keeping out Sebastian Haller and Soufian El Karouani’s efforts from the spot.

Thanks to the win over Utrecht, Ajax have qualified for the second preliminary round of the Conference League.

If Ajax manage to win that fixture against an opponent that will be determined on June 17, they must win two more knockout ties to qualify for the league phase of the tournament.