It was an urgent request from the Italian authorities: Because of the delta variant of the corona virus, which is rampant in Great Britain, no fans of the English national team should come to the quarter-finals in Rome. And Uefa responded.
The sale of tickets to football fans from Great Britain for the quarter-finals of the European Championship in Rome has been stopped. “The Italian authorities have urgently asked UEFA to take measures to prevent British citizens from circumventing the quarantine measures required when entering Italy,” said the European Football Union on Thursday evening. On Saturday at 9 p.m., Ukraine and England will play in the Italian capital for a place in the semi-finals.
Travelers from the UK currently have to be in quarantine for five days if they want to come to Italy. There is concern about more infections due to the rampant delta variant of the corona virus. England reached the quarter-finals of the tournament on Tuesday with a 2-0 win in the round of 16 against Germany.
Tickets that have already been sold will be canceled
“In view of the times, it is impossible to come to Italy now to watch the game on Saturday and at the same time comply with the quarantine,” said State Secretary of the Ministry of Health, Pierpaolo Sileri, in an interview with the newspaper “Corriere della Sera”.
“In particular, the tickets that have been sold to British citizens since June 28 are to be canceled. In addition, the sale and transfer of these tickets are to be stopped with effect from this Thursday evening 9 pm,” said the Uefa. Tickets already sold to the British could be given or returned to people residing in Italy. Previously, calls for stricter controls had already been made in Italy.
In Great Britain, the British Secretary of State Anne-Marie Trevelyan advised her compatriots not to travel to Rome. “The request is really to watch the game from home and to cheer the team on as loudly as possible,” said the politician to the TV broadcaster Sky.
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