WHO Europe calls for better monitoring of Euro spectators

Host cities of Euro 2020 football matches need to better monitor the movement of spectators, including before they arrive and after they leave the stadiums, the World Health Organisation said on Thursday.

"We need to look much beyond just the stadia themselves," Catherine Smallwood, Senior Emergency Officer at WHO's European office, told a press conference when asked about recommendations in the face of rising cases in London and St Petersburg, which are due to host upcoming quarter-final matches.

Asked about whether the Euro championship was potentially acting as a "super spreader" event, WHO regional director for Europe Hans Kluge replied: "I hope not... but this can't be excluded."

Hundreds of cases have been detected among spectators attending Euro matches, including Scots returning from London, Finns returning from Saint Petersburg and carriers of the more contagious Delta variant in Copenhagen.

"What we need to look at is around the stadia. How are people getting there? Are they travelling in large crowded convoys of buses? Are they taking individual measures when they are doing that?," Smallwood said.