The second Glasgow Host City / Hampden meeting was on Thursday 20 May and hosted by the Glasgow Council Host City Mobility Team.  In addition to us there was representation from Police Scotland, FSE, SFA, UEFA and Czech fans group.

Fanzone

The Glasgow Fanzone will  be at Glasgow Green.  This will be ticketed with capacity aiming to be 2,000 – 3,000.  This has not been fully signed off yet due to Glasgow still being in Level 3. All games throughout the tournament are intended to be shown, and each day will consist of several slots for viewing the matches. If all signed off, majority of tickets will be free.

Transport

Supporters Buses will be directed on approach to Glasgow so be mindful that you may be asked to use a different route than what you are used to. There are parking spaces for 70 buses and these will be at Langside Road and Jessie Street.  Again, parking will be via the UEFA app which is still to be shared.  ATAC had contacted the clubs who advertise their buses on the SFA website through the ATAC/SFA initiative and there will only be around a dozen buses coming from these groups most of which are at 50% capacity.  Granted some clubs did not reply but those travelling by bus would appear to be very low in comparison to previous matches.  The main reason for this will likely be vastly reduced tickets being available.

We were shown a presentation for travel to the stadium and once this is finalised we will be able to share it.  We asked about Hampden car park and was informed that around 50% of the car park footprint is taken up by broadcasting units.  A lot of the remainder is required for socially distanced queuing etc.  If clubs have elderly or supporters requiring assistance then they may be able to drop these people off closer to Hampden so long as this is well before kick-off times – suggest at least two hours before.  This will be at discretion of those in control on the day. 

There will be free shuttle buses for ticket holders from Glasgow City Centre and these will drop off at Queens Drive and Aitkenhead Road. 

Stadium

The first thing to emphasise here is that UEFA “own” the stadium for these games.  It was reiterated that approach to the stadium will not resemble what we are used to.  When we get to the last KM there will be soft ticket checks, “Disney Style” socially distanced queuing lanes and then further ticket checks.  The UEFA ticket app is now live although no PNA tickets appear to have been allocated at this point in time.  As such, we do not know which area of the stadium our PNA allocation will be for. 

Again we asked about requirements for ID.  Again this will be linked through the ID on the portal account and passport details supplied. Tickets will be synched to the phone and act as the ID.  If members do not have a smart phone then suggest checking UEFA terms and conditions for advice.

There are currently no plans for temperature checks or lateral flow testing.  Like everything it is subject to change.  Similar to Wembley only very small bags are allowed into the stadium.  Check the ticket terms and conditions if you need more info here.  Again, mask wearing is required inside the stadium.

Food and drink availability within the stadium is still to be confirmed and will be communicated.  Again, we expressed that this is one of the things that are key to getting fans into the stadium early.

Egress is aiming to be in a controlled manner but spectators are advised to leave by their nearest exit.  Keep an eye on the screens for information during and after the games.

We have asked the question about whether bagpipes are allowed inside the stadium, and await an answer from UEFA.

Next meeting planned for early June, and again, we will provide a subsequent update.

*Materials published on this website and in this article is the copyright of the Association of Tartan Army Clubs, and may not be quoted or reproduced without prior permission

The third meeting for the stakeholders of the London Host City / Wembley matches was on Wednesday 19 May.  In addition to ATAC there was various representation from the MET, FSE, BTP, GLA, The FA, Czech and Croatian fans groups.

Fanzone

As previously pointed out the Fanzone will be at Trafalgar Square.  For the first two England group matches the capacity will be restricted to between 750 and 790.  It will be ticket only, by invitation, and these first two matches are only open to key workers.  The intention for the Fanzone is that is will be a place to watch the matches rather than a pre-match venue.  Greater London Authority are aiming to secure the square from Thursday 17 June.  Post-21 June, they are aiming to accommodate around 7,500 if social distancing measures are relaxed.

Transport

It appears that trains from Scotland to London are sold out for matchday and also for matchday -1.  Currently, alcohol is permitted on Avanti trains but LNER are still dry.  British Transport Police are pushing for updates and are conscious that a level of relaxation would be well received by passengers. 

Bus parking zones will be bookable via a UEFA app.  Once we have the link to this it will be shared.  If driving to the match then the recommendation is to park North of London and to get an overland train.  There was a lot of emphasis on the fact that both driving and parking within London is not a pleasant experience.

For the Czech and Croatian fans under current Amber travel restrictions they face a 10 day quarantine with a test on day 2 and also on day 5. The UK government want to end restrictions on 21 June but the Indian/April 02/B.1.617 variant may prevent this. The Czech and Croatian reps both spoke about how difficult their current position is, and with continued uncertainty as to whether those with tickets will be able to attend. Some may travel, but the bulk of both supporters based outside of the UK remain in limbo.  We have sympathised with both fan groups, and really feel for the Croatian and Czech fans sitting in on these planning meetings knowing that there is a good chance they will not be attending the games.

Stadium

We asked which section our PNA tickets will be for.  This is not yet known.  We asked if photocopies of ID would be acceptable.  There seems to be a feeling that the tightly controlled UEFA ticket app may preclude this as it holds passport details.  Graeme pointed out that ID is a requirement within the UEFA ticketing terms and conditions but there is a feeling that this may be to cover all bases for the specific countries where this is law.

Currently there is no requirement to provide negative lateral flow tests but mask wearing inside is required.  Obviously current advice could change.  Food and drink should be available in the stadium.  We have asked if bagpipes are allowed and are waiting to find out.  Note that only very small bags are permitted to be taken inside the stadium.  There are no staggered egress plans for after the match.

Non-ticket Fans

If there are fans travelling to London without tickets then it is advised that they book pubs for watching the match.  Again, it was made clear by the hosts in London that this will not be a normal trip and fans without tickets would really be better staying in Scotland to watch the game.  Mass gatherings are not permitted in England under covid restrictions.  Places such as Hyde Park have additional complications given their Royal Park status, and should be avoided.

A further meeting is scheduled for early June, and we will continue to provide updates from these sessions.

*Materials published on this website and in this article is the copyright of the Association of Tartan Army Clubs, and may not be quoted or reproduced without prior permission

Last week, ATACs Chair and Vice Chair were invited to join the first of several meetings with the Glasgow Host City stakeholders, to discuss the plans for fans returning to Hampden for the Euro2020 matches, and some of the plans and mitigations in place. The meeting was attended by those on the Glasgow Host City team, SFA security, Police Scotland, and Football Supporters Europe.

Transport

We discussed the various plans for travelling to Hampden. It is expected that the majority of those heading to the stadium will begin their match day experience somewhere in Glasgow city and head to Hampden from there. Shuttle buses will be running from the City Centre.  Walking routes will be signposted and there will be volunteers and stewards similar to what was in place for the Commonwealth Games. Given the current situation, Walking from the city is the preferred option, and would avoid various stages of queueing for fans.

There will also be some supporters buses running direct to Hampden, although reduced numbers due to social distancing. There will be a parking tool launched on the UEFA website for bus organisers to claim a parking permit. There will be several areas where buses will be directed to. More info on when this parking tool launches will be forthcoming and ATAC will communicate this with all of our clubs, and the extended list of clubs we hold who run buses.

Fanzone

As was recently reported in the media, the Fanzone for Glasgow has now been relocated to Glasgow Green – plans still being finalised, but the intention is this is planning to be open for all 31 days of the tournament.  Similar to the one in London it will be ticketed and tickets will be free but applied for through a ballot.  It will show all matches and on tournament rest days there will likely be cultural type events.

Heading to the Stadium

The stadium itself will open 3 hours before kick off. Fans are encouraged to get in to the stadium as early as possible. There will likely be half hour entry slots for ticket holders, although we are unsure at present how these will be allocated.

On closer approach to Hampden there will be three perimeter entrances.  Your ticket will determine which one you should be heading towards.  We were told that stadium approach and entry will be different to what we are used to. There will be security checks on approach including searches with “wands” similar to what airport security use.  Your virtual ticket will be activated at a certain point as you approach the stadium.  Socially distanced queues will be in place to enter the stadium and there may be more than one search as you approach.

These security protocols will be in place for everyone that attends.  If you arrive at 10 mins to kick off then you will need to go through all these processes just as the fans who arrived 90 mins before you did.  Leaving entry to the last minute will risk missing a decent chunk of the match.  Do not leave it to the last minute.

Once inside the stadium we are unsure what facilities will be open, but as we are already aware, there have been no changes to the alcohol at football legislation.  We did point out that there needs to be something on offer to realistically attract fans inside two hours before kick off.  We did also point out that our 2pm match will have a totally different feel to our 8pm kick off. The organisation team agreed, and committed to continuing to work on this.

UEFA Euro 2020 Fans App

The team shared some of the excellent content available on the UEFA Euro 2020 Fans App, and we would encourage fans to download this

Future Meetings

For most of us this will be the first time we’ve been at a professional football match with a crowd for over a year. They will provide great opportunities to show that Hampden, Glasgow and Scotland are capable of delivering events, and we fully support the efforts of the Host City team to host these matches in the difficult circumstances we currently find ourselves in.  We are aiming to have joined up comms with the SFA and Host City teams as we go forward. ATAC have taken an action to approach the clubs on the Supporter’s Bus Lists to establish how many we are anticipating using that method of transport, and we will meet again with the stakeholders in a few weeks time.

As always, if any supporters have any points for us to ask or raise, or any concerns to get in touch with us wither through your ATAC Club rep, or with us directly, ahead of future meetings.

*Materials published on this website and in this article is the copyright of the Association of Tartan Army Clubs, and may not be quoted or reproduced without prior permission

ATAC Chair Martin Riddell, and Vice Chair Graeme Baxter, attended a 2nd meeting on Friday 30th April, again hosted by the MET Police’s Lead Planner for the Euros, in follow up to the meeting at the start of May. In attendance were representatives from the MET Police, the FA, Football Supporters Europe, Greater London Authority / Mayors office, British Transport Police, Police Scotland, along with reps from the England and Croatian Supporters Clubs, and the Czech National Team SLO.

Below are some notes from the meeting, and a further meeting is planned for Mid May.

Ticketing and Capacities
UEFA doing reverse ballot at the end of this week.  This means that fans who have tickets in the general sale should know their outcome.  PNA (Participating Nation Allocation) tickets are dealt with by each FA although they are ultimately sold via the UEFA portal.  For Czech and Croatia fans, their FAs may give preference to their fans living in the UK when it comes to cancelling their tickets as a result of 25% capacity.   In England’s case, the FA cancelled all PNA tickets and are now re-balloting/re-selling based on their fans that have the most caps (the equivalent to our loyalty points). once the new PN Allocations are confirmed. We asked if bubble/same household seating would likely offer the opportunity of a small increase in our allocation, however it appears a directive from UEFA states that ALL seats will be socially distanced, and have 3 or 4 between them, irrespective of who you order with.

If any FA decided that they can’t use their allocation due to travel restrictions then they can return these to UEFA.  There is not yet an agreed process to what would then happen with these tickets, and that would be for UEFA to decide.

The current English roadmap suggests that they may move from 25% to 50% capacity between their 2^nd and 3^rd group games.  Current plans are that all their group matches will be at 25%.  Any move to 50% would be based on test event data.  This will be important to us for when we play our semi final and final at Wembley!!!

International Travel

There is no exemption from travel restrictions for any fan attending matches. The next international travel announcement is due ahead of the 17 May.  There is an expectation that this will introduce a strict traffic light system of quarantine.  For example, Red = hotel quarantine, Amber = home/friend/relative quarantine, Green = no quarantine.  We had talked before about hypothetical bubble shuttles to get away fans into matches.  This would have meant charter plane, bussed straight to match and returned the same way post-match.  This now looks unlikely based on the potentially stricter travel guidelines above.  The Croatian rep asked if quarantine would be based at country level as they have areas within the country on different levels of infection.  It was felt that the travel guidelines would be country specific with no allowance for regions within a country.

For our other group opponents both the Croatian and Czech fans reps said that travelling numbers would be very low if quarantining was in place.  Normally they would have expected a few thousand from each country to travel but they will have very few as things currently stand.  As mentioned above, this may mean that their FAs begin to identify Croatian and Czech fans living in the UK to get their tickets.  This may not be possible or desired by their FAs.  It was also mentioned that the UEFA reverse ballot may take into account fans of Croatia and Czech living in UK to ensure that they have some representation at Hampden and Wembley.

Our Match(es) at Wembley

The Trafalgar Square fanzone mentioned last month will be in operation for all matches at Wembley and all England fixtures.  No decision yet on the capacity but as stated last month, this is for watching matches rather than a pre-match party.  It will be ticketed.  We asked for alternative suggestions for Scotland fans to gather at but there are currently no plans for this.

With no current travel restrictions in place for UK travel there is an expectation that many will travel to London.  Keeping in mind that the capacity in bars in England just now is 30% then we were advised it would make sense to discourage ticketless fans. Anyone who does still plans to attended should plan accordingly and book in to places to avoid disappointment.

A few final bits and pieces. 

• The scheduled trains from Scotland to London are now very limited availability. 
• Charter trains were not viable due to reduced capacities and social distancing. 
• We are aware that there are some supporters buses arranged – expectation is that these will be reduced capacity in line with travel guidelines
• Face coverings and social distancing requirements should be observed in London on the underground etc.  No drinking alcohol is permitted on the underground.
• Dry trains may be implemented in the day running up to the match, although a decision has not yet been made – alcohol is currently not allowed on trains due to Covid restrictions.

A follow up meeting has been scheduled for mid May, and if any Scotland fan wishes to raise any points with us, please do get in touch!

A separate meeting is taking place later this week with the Glasgow Team, and we will endeavour to produce a similar summary of relevant points .