At the final round of the European Football Championship in London with tens of thousands of spectators and a number of fans around Wembley Stadium, more than 3000 people were infected with the corona virus.
That comes from the figures of the health authority Public Health England for the two England games in the semifinals and finals on July 7th and 11th, which they published on Friday.
2295 of those present in and around the stadium are said to have been most likely infectious at the time of the games.
3404 other people are said to have been infected around these events.
Chaotic scenes
A corona test was actually necessary for access to Wembley Stadium, but visitors had to state that it was negative. In particular, during the final between England and Italy, chaotic scenes had played out at Wembley. Thousands broke into the stadium without a ticket, and there were several violent clashes.
The British government had previously been criticized by health experts for admitting 60,000 spectators in the stadium at the height of a massive wave of corona infections at the games, even under pressure from the European Football Union. After the figures were published, those responsible called on the population to get vaccinated and continue to watch out. "We have shown that we can again hold major sporting and cultural events in a safe manner, but it is important that people remain cautious in very crowded environments."
When asked, the Ministry of Sports could not say how many people actually became infected in the stadium and how many in the case of fan gatherings outside. The events had "attracted a significant number of ticketless people to the Wembley Stadium area, who likely contributed to the increase in infections around the event," the statement said.