The first leg of the Euro 2016 playoff between Sweden and Denmark in Stockholm was to go ahead yesterday with heightened security following attacks in Paris, the Swedish Football Association (SvFF) said.
However, Germany’s friendly against the Netherlands on Tuesday is now in doubt, after the Germans spent Friday night at the stadium in Paris following their 2-0 loss to France, which took place amid the attacks.
Gunmen and bombers attacked restaurants, a concert hall and a sports stadium at locations across the French capital on Friday, killing 128 people in a deadly rampage that French President Francois Hollande said was the work of the Islamic State.
German Football Association president Reinhard Rauball said a final decision on the game against the Dutch in Hanover, Germany, would be made today.
“We will now sleep over it and then see how we will approach things for Tuesday or not, but my opinion is that we should not yield to terror,” Rauball told reporters after the team’s arrival in Frankfurt, Germany, yesterday.
The team and staff remained inside the stadium area for the entire night before heading straight to the airport.
“We are now just happy to have landed back safely,” team manager Oliver Bierhoff said. “The squad and the entire team and staff were highly professional in dealing with this special situation.”
All sports competitions in the Paris region have been suspended following Friday’s events, as well as European Champions Cup rugby fixtures across the country.
The SvFF said it had been given the go-ahead to play the first leg of a tie that is to determine who qualifies for next year’s 24-team tournament in France.
“The game will absolutely be played,” SvFF head of communications Niklas Bodell told TV4. “There was no real doubt. We have followed developments during the night and drawn certain conclusions.”
“Together with the police and security police we have decided to take certain actions to raise the level of security from a level that is already high, so that those attending the game can feel safe and secure,” he added.
No details were given as to exactly what actions would be taken, but the SvFF Web site encouraged supporters to get to the Friends Arena early.
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