In the 2021–22 football season, UEFA introduced a new, third-tier European competition: the Europa Conference League. Initially derided as a joke competition that teams would go out of their way not to qualify for, it actually turned out to be pretty good: good-quality teams, bigger names than you’d expect, playing out good-quality matches.
Eventually, in a final played in a tiny stadium in Albania, Roma emerged victorious over Feyenoord and became the trophy’s first ever winners. Their fans, and the city as a whole, celebrated raucously for days afterwards, fêting as heroes both the manager Jose Mourinho and the players.
