Euro final fuels outbreak fears as nations fight surges
July 12, 2021
LONDON: British authorities warned of the dangers of large gatherings for Sunday’s Euro 2020 football final, fearful of the highly transmissible Delta coronavirus variant that is firing outbreaks across the world.
Many nations have been forced to reimpose curbs as they battle outbreaks accelerated by the variant — which was first detected in India
— while trying to ramp up vaccinations to allow their economies to reopen.
London was set to host more than 60,000 fans at Wembley Stadium for the virus-delayed Euro 2020 final, the biggest crowd at a British football match since the start of the pandemic, as England take on Italy. Authorities are particularly concerned about the risk of large numbers at fan zones and pubs to watch England’s first appearance in a major football final in more than half a century. But the fans did not appear to have been put off. Hundreds converged on Wembly many hours before kick-off, singing and swigging beer. Neil Houldsworth, 61, told AFP: “If it gets busier I will wear a mask. Personally, there’s no worry at all,” he added, trusting in the high numbers of double-jabbed people.