Friday June 18, 2021
Corona exceptions for VIP guests
UEFA threatens London to withdraw the European Championship finals
The two semi-finals and the final of the European Football Championship are to take place at London’s Wembley Stadium. UEFA is expecting 2,500 delegates, media professionals and other VIPs. They should actually isolate themselves after their arrival – unreasonable for UEFA.
Due to the English Corona regulations, London could possibly lose the European Championship final. The British newspaper “The Times” reports that UEFA is threatening to award the final and the two semi-finals to Budapest at short notice if the government does not grant the football association and its guests an exception to the quarantine rules.
The two semi-finals of the European Championship are scheduled for July 6th and 7th, the European Championship final will be played on July 11th in London’s Wembley Stadium. UEFA is expecting hundreds of guests for the three highlights of the tournament. This includes its own delegates, officials from the European football associations and the world football association Fifa. High-ranking politicians, representatives of sponsors and the media should also accompany the four best teams at the European Championship in London and examine them on site.
However, the English corona regulations currently only see a green list for a few countries, regions and locations quarantine-free entry. For entries from all other regions, those affected must go into quarantine for ten days after their arrival and complete two corona tests, which must be booked and paid for before arrival. Only then are they allowed to leave their accommodation.
Budapest attracts with a lot of freedom
Since UEFA does not agree with this regulation, the British government is discussing an exemption for the VIP guests, according to the Times. However, since your uncontrolled visit could lead to increasing numbers of corona infections and a further delay in the full opening originally planned for June 21, great public outrage from the population is feared.
Budapest is presumably preferred by UEFA as the venue because, unlike in the other European Championship venues, there are virtually no corona restrictions. While the capacity utilization in the stadiums in London, Munich, Copenhagen or Rome is around 20 to 35 percent, the Hungarian national team can play in front of up to 61,000 fans at full capacity in the Puskas Arena.
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