Integrity Score 2097
No Records Found
No Records Found
No Records Found
Euro 2020, held in June and July, was a great success. Unlike in previous editions, the venues were in multiple countries, but soccer was exciting. The venues saw good attendance of fans with some restrictions.
But in England, it was a different story. Over 60,000 fans thronged the semifinal and final matches at the legendary Wembley Stadium in London. Although the fans were supposed to follow strict guidelines like only those with a negative Covid-19 test or proof of complete vaccination being allowed, many were calling such measures a farce.
Members of the European Parliament and German ministers had said that allowing 60,000 fans into Wembley and other Euro 2020 venues would be “a recipe for disaster.” Even World Health Organization warned about a potential surge in cases. [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/01/covid-euro-2020-crowds-a-recipe-for-disaster-warns-german-minister]
It turns out that the critics were probably right and that the Wembley matches were indeed super spreaders.
According to the British government data that was released this week reveals that
more than 9,000 Covid cases were linked to the Wembley matches. The final between England and Italy at Wembley Stadium was also branded a ‘superspreader event’, as 2,295 people were likely to carry the infection when they attended the event. The report says that a further 3,400 people may have been infected during the event on July 11. [https://www.timesofisrael.com/euro-2020-soccer-final-in-london-was-a-superspreader-event-uk-data/]
The Public Health England (PHE) report says that "subsequent peaks" of new corona infections across the country around the knockout matches in England. They also show that “people who tested positive took part in a variety of activities - including visits to bars and pubs, other households and restaurants”.
The study also looked at the Wimbledon tennis tournament in June. Around 880 cases were linked to the tennis tournament which hosted over 300,000 people.
However, the government is unfazed after the report. It has said data gathered from the pilot scheme shows large-scale sporting events can go ahead safely with full crowds. [https://metro.co.uk/2021/08/21/euro-2020-final-was-superspreader-event-with-3404-covid-cases-linked-to-match-15128267/]
Read more:
Wembley finals were superspreaders: News reports:
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/euro-2020-final-was-covid-superspreader-event-0h9px8rwj
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/08/20/5000-caught-covid-euro-2020-final-semi-finals-says-phe/
People were forewarned:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/01/covid-euro-2020-crowds-a-recipe-for-disaster-warns-german-minister
What does the government say about the report:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-data-shows-mass-events-can-take-place-safely-but-fans-urged-to-remain-cautious-in-crowds-and-get-vaccinated