AS Monaco saw themselves stuck in a bizarre situation when their flight to Belgium grounded. Monaco were travelling to the West European country to take on Club Brugee at the Jan Breydel Stadium for their opening UEFA Champions League (UCL) 2025-26 match. During the way, their flight landed due to a technical issue. The flight's air conditioning system stopped working which accumulated heat in the plane. The technical failure heated the cabin and players travelling on the flight took off their clothes to endure the situation. In a viral video on social media, Monaco players can be seen barely clothed and sweating profusely. Eventually, players looked relieved when they left the plane on the runway and breathe in fresh air.
Monaco Manager Adi
Hutter explained why the flight was landed and his players were forced to exit the plane. Hutter remarked, "For technical reasons, it was impossible to travel, as everyone's safety was not guaranteed. That's why we decided, in agreement with (AS Monaco CEO) Thiago Scuro, to postpone our trip."
Watch the video here:
AS Monaco start their Champions League 2025-26 season with a crushing defeat
Monaco eventually reached Belgium on Thursday morning and squared off against Club Brugge in their first UEFA Champions League 2025-26 match of the season. In the first half of the contest, Monaco trailed as the home team notched up three goals within 42 minutes of the match. In the 75th minute, Mamadou Diakhon scored for Brugge and added salt to Monaco's injuries.
In the 91st minute, Ansu Fati racked up a goal for Monaco but that didn’t affect Brugge as they were completely dominating in the game. Eventually, with the referee’s whistle, Monaco kicked off their campaign with a humiliating loss of 4-1.