How to get to Helsinki Olympic Stadium: Best ways for Man United fans to travel for Wrexham pre-season friendly

Although the World Cup is heating up in North America, back home, pre-season is about to begin for all 92 football clubs in the Premier League and English Football League.

For the country's biggest clubs, pre-season during international tournaments isn't ideal as a significant portion of players are away with their national teams and won't return until the beginning of the season.

That is the case for Manchester United, who have 13 players at the World Cup, but that isn't stopping Michael Carrick from beginning pre-season with those still in the UK.

First up for the Red Devils is a match against Wrexham in Helsinki on Saturday, 18 July. Hundreds, if not thousands, of Man Utd fans are expected to travel over to Finland for the match. If you are one of them, here are some of the best ways to travel to Helsinki from the UK.

Flying directly from the United Kingdom to Helsinki

The most logical way to get to Helsinki for the match on 18 July is to fly directly from a UK airport to the capital of Finland. Fortunately for United fans, there are direct flights from Manchester to Helsinki in the days leading up to the match and return flights back the day after.

At the time of writing, the most expensive dates to travel are the Friday to the Sunday, so you may have to either go earlier in the week or come back a day later to get the best deals.

Alternatively, fans can fly out from a different UK airport. While that may result in extra hassle, if it saves hundreds of pounds, it is certainly worth considering.

At present, there are direct return flights from London Stansted to Helsinki, travelling from Friday, 17 July to Sunday, 19 July for £300. This is around £150 cheaper than the flights from/to Manchester on the same dates.

No USA for a fourth year running this summer. #MUFC staying in Europe for pre-season! Planned cities:

🇸🇪 Gothenburg
🇫🇮 Helsinki
🇵🇱 Warsaw
🇳🇴 Oslo
🇮🇪 Dublin

Sounds like a good time for Reds who have missed the Euro travels this season 👏👏👏

— Alex Turk (@TurkTalksFC) March 7, 2026

Flying with a connection to Helsinki

Another way to make flights to Helsinki from the United Kingdom cheaper is to add a connection to your journey. If you are looking for a quick in-and-out job, then this probably isn't for you. However, if you have the time to make more of a trip of it, then why not?

United fans may want to consider flying out from Manchester to Brussels on Thursday, 17 July, enjoying a day in Brussels, before connecting to Helsinki on the Friday. A return trip returning on the Monday, also via Brussels, works out at £250.

Can you travel on land from Manchester to Helsinki?

You can travel on land from Manchester to Helsinki, but it is one almighty trek. The journey would require several train connections and even some bus journeys. In total, the quickest you could do it is 42 hours, which is far too long to spend on trains.

FGG says: Don't overcomplicate matters

The most logical thing to do here is to simply fly directly to Helsinki from either Manchester or London. After all, United are back in Europe this season, so it is not as if their fans need to make a big trip out of this pre-season friendly. Whatever you do, don't try to get the train there.