Berlin (dpa)
The European Football Association (UEFA) announced the tightening of security measures at the UEFA Euro 2024 football stadiums in Germany, after five people, including a young child, stormed the field to take a selfie with Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo during the Turkey match.
UEFA indicated that security measures in the stadiums will be strengthened to prevent the recurrence of such incidents.
UEFA warned in its statement, saying: “Any attempt to storm the stadium is a violation of the regulations, and will lead to the fan being expelled from the stadium, being prevented from attending the rest of the tournament matches, and filing a criminal complaint against him on charges of assaulting others’ property.”
Portugal national team coach Roberto Martinez criticized the incident of storming the stadium, saying, “Today the fans’ intentions were good, but caution must be taken when the intentions are bad, and repeating such incidents is unacceptable.”
For his part, the 10-year-old boy who stormed the stadium told Bild newspaper: “I have achieved my dream.”
The child, who plays for the German city of Kassel, added: “Now I have a picture with Cristiano Ronaldo. I will put it on the shirt and in my room.”
He also said that he informed his friends of his plan to storm the stadium before the match, and no one believed him, noting that he succeeded in sneaking into the stadium, after informing his father that he was going to the toilet. “I saw him on the roof of the bench, and he was running fast,” the father told Bild newspaper. No sanctions were imposed on the boy, as his father said, “It seems that UEFA has overlooked the matter because he is a young child.”
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