FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football – Euro 2020 – Group D – England v Croatia – Wembley Stadium, London, Britain – June 13, 2021 General view as England’s Raheem Sterling celebrates scoring their first goal with team mates and fans Pool via REUTERS/Catherine Ivill/File Photo
June 18, 2021
By Simon Evans
MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) -UEFA has a contingency plan to replace Wembley as the host for the final of Euro 2020 unless the British government agrees to exempt travelling foreign fans from 10-day quarantine rules, it said on Friday.
Tournament organisers have been in negotiations with the government since it postponed plans to end COVID-19 restrictions on June 21.
The Times newspaper reported on Friday that Budapest was the alternative venue being considered if Wembley was not able to accept travelling supporters.
The London stadium is scheduled to host both semi-finals and the final.
“There is always a contingency plan but we are confident that the final week (of matches) will be held in London,” UEFA said in a statement.
European soccer’s governing body said discussions with local authorities centred on allowing fans of participating teams to attend matches “using a strict testing and bubble concept that would mean their stay in the UK would be less than 24 hours and their movements would be restricted to approved transport and venues only.”
UEFA said it understood the pressures the government faced. It hoped discussions would reach a “satisfactory conclusion” and was delighted that capacity at Wembley was scheduled to go up to at least 50% for the knock-out round matches.
(Reporting by Simon Evans; editing by John Stonestreet)
