Newcastle Airport announce exclusive flights to Champions League destination as Newcastle United beat Spurs

Popular airline TUI has launched a new flight programme from Newcastle Airport which includes a Champions League destination that Newcastle United fans will hope to visit next season.

A 6-1 thumping of Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday afternoon helped boost the Magpies' hopes for European football last season as they now sit six points ahead of Spurs in fifth place, with a game in hand on the North London club.

Last year, Ryanair announced that flights to Barcelona had been restored from the North East, which turned the head of Newcastle fans and now a similar move has come from TUI.

The airline announced a number of new flights from Newcastle Airport last week as an additional fifth aircraft is to be based at the airport.

It means that TUI will serve 29 destinations in 12 countries with an additional 120,000 seats on sale, including trips to Naples.

The Italian city is an exclusive destination for Newcastle alongside others that include Cancun in Mexico, Orlando in Florida and Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt.

Naples is, of course, home to Napoli and the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium.

The Italian club featured in the Champions League this year but were knocked out in the quarter-finals by rivals AC Milan last week having returned to the competition for the first time since 2020.

The club look a shoo-in to feature in the competition next season too thanks to a spectacular season in the Serie A. Luciano Spalletti's side have stormed the Italian league this season and are currently top with a 17-point gap on second with seven fixtures left to play.

Newcastle have never faced Napoli in the club's history, so any meeting in the Champions League next year would be a very first.

European football is at the forefront of Newcastle United players' minds. After the win over Spurs, Kieran Trippier said: "We let the supporters down last week and it was about responding well. I thought we did that. We got some goals early in the game. We showed throughout the season we want to be on the front foot.

“I thought Alex Isak was unbelievable. It’s healthy competition with Callum Wilson. Nobody complains when they don’t play.

“We shouldn’t be scared to say we want to play Champions League football. The games are running out. This stadium would be bouncing with Champions League football.

“I played for Eddie Howe before so I knew what he demanded in training and off the pitch. The players here before him, (Miguel) Almiron, Joelinton, (Jacob) Murphy, have done unbelievable. That comes down to the gaffer’s coaching. He’s making them believe how good they are.”