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London, United Kingdom
A group of researchers has concluded that there is a clear link between a surge of coronavirus cases in Scottish men and the Euro 2020 football tournament.
Three days after the England v Scotland match took place at the Wembley Stadium, coronavirus infections peaked in Scotland. More than half of these recorded cases had either attended some Euro 2020 event or had come in close contact with someone who had been to Euro 2020.
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"Using data abstracted from contact tracing interviews from 11 June to 7 July 2021, we identified 2,632 cases who self-reported attendance at EURO 2020-related events," the report read. "The peak in cases occurred on 21 June 2021, 3 days after the England vs Scotland match at the Wembley Stadium and declined gradually following Scotlandâs elimination from the championship on 22 June 2021. Approximately 4% of the 63,874 new SARS-CoV-2 cases reported in Scotland from 11 June to 7 July were related to EURO 2020. Travelling to London was reported by 61% of the 2,632 cases."
Researchers also believe that Scotlandâs early exit from the tournament might have resulted in a subsequent decrease in Covid cases.
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The matches had taken place even though the Delta variant had started widely spreading in the UK and other European countries.
While the authorities tried taking care of all safety concerns related to the spread of COVID-19, researchers believe that small domestic gatherings to celebrate and watch the games might have played a huge role in this surge.
"The majority of the cases reported attending unofficial Euro 2020 events linked to smaller gatherings such as house parties, visits to pubs and restaurants, as well as extended travel highlighting a need for targeted guidance on how to safely celebrate in small informal gatherings with appropriate social distancing, proper ventilation and mask wearing in closed spaces," the report read.