Are the organizers of the Euro football taking too many risks with the health situation? The growing circulation of the more contagious Delta variant, as well as the infection of English players and Finnish fans, worries some European authorities.
In an interview with the regional daily Augsburger Allgemeine published on Tuesday, the German Interior Minister urged the British government and the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) to reduce the number of fans admitted to Wembley Stadium in London for the last matches of the Euros . “I find it irresponsible that tens of thousands of people gather in narrow spaces in countries classified as at risk because of the highly contagious Delta variant”, as is currently the case in Great Britain, said Bavarian Horst Seehofer , also in charge of Sports.
Extended gauge at Wembley
The statement comes hours before the Germany-England clash in the round of 16 at Wembley, which is to be played in front of some 45,000 supporters, around 50% of the stadium’s capacity. The latter must climb to 75% for the semi-finals and the final, or about 60,000 supporters.
In comparison, the capacity of the Allianz Arena in Munich, which also hosts Euro matches in Germany, has been set at 20%, or around 14,000 spectators. For Horst Seehofer, the 20% rule should serve as a “criteria” for all other meetings.
Britain, which is experiencing a resurgence in cases of coronavirus infections due to the Delta variant, is still limiting the movement of its nationals. In addition, the country has been classified by Germany as a risk zone. Germans or residents of Germany returning from Great Britain must observe a 14-day quarantine, including vaccinated and immunized people. Chancellor Angela Merkel has more than once expressed her concern about the risks posed by the Euro for the spread of the Delta and deplored the lack of coordination at European level on the restrictions to be imposed on travelers coming from countries at risk.
“This is not an innocent decision”
On Monday, the Greek Margaritis Schinas, also worried about the holding of the semi-finals and the final of the Euro at Wembley Stadium. Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for promoting the European way of life, he supervises and coordinates the activities of several commissioners, including the one responsible for sport.
“It is not a decision that we will have to take at the Commission. It belongs to UEFA. But I want to share my doubts on the possibility of organizing the semi-final and final of the Euros at Wembley , to a packed stadium, as the UK restricts its citizens’ travel to the EU,” he told the European Parliament in Brussels. “I think UEFA would do well to analyze this decision carefully. It is not an innocent decision. It will have to be made knowingly.”
Last week, Italian Council President Mario Draghi expressed the wish that the final “not take place in a country where contagions are growing rapidly”. Interviewed by the German daily Passauer Neue Presse, Doctor Frank Ulrich Montgomery, head of the World Medical Association (WMA), believes that opening the English borders for the Euro is “populism” and strongly advises against going there, because of the risk of contamination with the Delta variant of Covid-19.
Finnish supporters cluster
The concern is all the more acute as the Covid-19 circulates in the tournament, among the players as well as among the supporters. On the player side, the English Mason Mount and Ben Chilwell, had to isolate themselves due to contact with the Scotsman Billy Gilmour, who tested positive for Covid on June 21. On Monday, the participation of the two English players in the round of 16 against Germany was still uncertain, according to England coach Gareth Southgate. The English federation, in consultation with the British health authorities, had asked them on June 21, despite two negative tests, to isolate themselves and train separately for a week.
On the fan side, nearly 300 Finns returning from Saint Petersburg have tested positive for Covid-19, local health authorities announced on Monday. The health authority in charge of the epidemic, THL, renewed its call for testing all Finns who returned to the country after the defeat against Belgium last Monday and recommended that fans go into quarantine for at least 72 hours until when a screening test comes back negative.
The country’s authorities had already expressed their concern last Thursday after the detection of nearly a hundred cases among supporters returning from Russia. Local authorities near the border between Finland and Russia had then identified 86 cases during tests carried out at customs posts. And because of the congestion and traffic jams caused by the return of some 3,000 supporters on Tuesday, Finnish customs officials had to let nearly 800 people in without testing them, in particular in buses, according to local media.
Quarter-final maintained in Saint Petersburg
The organizers of the Euro, however, confirmed on Monday that the quarter-final between Switzerland and Spain would take place on Friday in Saint Petersburg. “The quarter-final will take place as planned,” the press service of the Organizing Committee of the Euro in Saint Petersburg told AFP. A UEFA spokesperson told AFP that the Russian health situation “changes absolutely nothing for the teams”, and that there were “no plans to change the venue of the match” .
After Moscow, Saint Petersburg is the Russian city most affected by the new wave of the epidemic caused by the Delta variant. The former Russian imperial city thus recorded 110 deaths in 24 hours, according to statistics published on Monday, surpassing the city’s death record for the second time in three days. The authorities have said since the start of the Euro that all health measures have been taken to ensure the health security of spectators and teams. But the distancing measures and the wearing of the mask are very random in the city, and this while vaccination has been skating there for many months. In this very difficult epidemic context, images showing thousands of people in the street for a traditional festive gathering marking the end of the school year have gone viral on social networks.
Already on June 22, the World Health Organization (WHO) was concerned about the easing of restrictions in some of the Euro-2020 host countries, after increases in coronavirus cases near several stadiums. . Danish supporters, in particular, had been infected with the Delta variant of the coronavirus after Denmark-Belgium and Denmark-Russia.