German Chancellor Angela Merkel hopes UEFA will act 'responsibly' on Wembley capacity

BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Tuesday she hopes UEFA will act "responsibly" on the issue of staging Euro 2020 matches in Britain given the spread there of the highly contagious delta variant of the coronavirus.

UEFA is discussing with the British government the possibility of increasing attendance at Wembley Stadium to 65,000 for the semifinals and final of the European Championship.

The government had already agreed to increase the capacity to at least 40,000 for the final three matches of the Euro 2020 tournament.

Merkel said she supports the British government's efforts to ensure necessary hygiene rules are respected in the 90,000-capacity venue.

"I hope that UEFA will deal (with this) responsibly and I don't think it would be good if the stadiums there are full," she told reporters in Berlin.