France’s Preparation For Euro 2016 To Go On According To Plan Despite Paris Attacks, Says UEFA

Next year’s Euro 2016 tournament will go ahead as scheduled without any changes, European football’s governing body UEFA said on Monday.

Friday’s deadly attacks in Paris, including outside the Stade de France where the Euro 2016 final is due to be played, provoked questions about the country’s ability to keep fans safe during the tournament.

But UEFA insisted in a statement sent to AFP that safety and security are always top priorities when organising a tournament.

“For over three years now, Euro 2016 SAS (the tournament organising committee) has been working closely with the relevant authorities to develop the most appropriate mechanisms in order to guarantee there is a safe and secure tournament and we are confident that the necessary measures will be taken to ensure that is the case for all involved,” said UEFA.

“The Euro final draw will go ahead as scheduled on 12 December at the Palais des Congres in Paris and the final tournament will be played in France from 10 June to 10 July 2016.”

Euro 2016 organising chief Jacques Lambert said on Saturday that preparing for a terrorist attack has always been part of the plans.

“The terrorist risk, ever since we presented our candidacy, has been considered a key risk,” said Lambert.

“But that doesn’t change the fundamentals: what we’ve put into practice with the Interior Minister remains relevant, we’ve just had to reassess the level of risk and the (preventative) measures.”

By AFP