UEFA EURO 2016: the City of Paris welcomes the agreement on security in the fan zones

Paris, April 26, 2016: Jean-François Martins, deputy Mayor of Paris, welcomes the overall agreement signed on Wednesday by the host cities, the State and UEFA to spill the cost of security measures in the fan zones between these three stakeholders.

From June 10 to July 10, UEFA EURO 2016 will be an extraordinary popular celebration in Paris that will attract Parisians and tens of thousands of visitors from France, Europe and around the world. The focal point of the animations will be the Eiffel tower fan zone on Champ de Mars, where up to 92.000 people will be gathered to watch the matches live and participate in a wide range of activities.

In the context of the Vigipirate high alert antiterrorist plan, an important security system is necessary. For more than a year, with have been working on its elaboration with the Police Authority and all the other stakeholders. Though this aspect is now an integral part of the specifications and is approached seriously and rigorously, the question of its financing remained unsolved », underlines Jean-François Martins, deputy Mayor of Paris and first vice president of the Club of host cities.

The agreement reached this morning is excellent news. It reflects the joint commitment and the sense of responsibility of host cities, the State and UEFA », adds the deputy Mayor. He states that « by raising the budget allocated to security from to 12 to 24 million euros, we are assured to be able to implement all the necessary and appropriate measures ».

The Eiffel tower fan zone will be entirely fenced and tight, entrance and exit will be through safe airlocks with a double system of control similar to those of the Stade de France or the Parc des Princes. Pat-down inspections, filtering, magnetic control, police dog unit, flow management team, mediation team, are a few examples of the package of measures that has been adopted. In addition to the police and gendarmerie forces, almost 400 private security agents will be mobilized.

At the end of March, Jean-François Martins had pointed to the Paris Council the essential role of the fan zones in the security system of UEFA EURO 2016. He had recalled that far from being a problem, they are on the contrary an essential asset to ensure the security of the competition. It seems more appropriate and effective to have a single secured area designed so as to concentrate supporters and events, with police forces and private security agents in sufficient number, than to control multiple, spontaneous and anarchic gatherings that might occupy the public space ».