Covid: 'Super-spreader' warning for Euro 2020 fan zone

Five hundred fans have bought tickets to watch England's Euro 2020 games at the fan zone

Euro 2020 fan zone match screenings in an area where Covid cases are surging could become "super-spreader events", a public health director has warned.

Tickets to watch England's first two group matches on a big screen at Preston's Flag Market have sold out.

Lancashire's public health director Dr Sakthi Karunanithi wants people to take tests before the 500-capacity events amid rising cases in the city.

He warned new virus variants could be "highly transmissible".

Lancashire has some of England's highest infection rates with a spike of the so-called Indian variant, now named the Delta variant.

The latest government figures showed the infection rate in Preston was the eleventh highest in England, with 182 cases per 100,000 people in the week leading up to 3 June.

Nearby Blackburn with Darwen has the highest rate in the country, while five more Lancashire areas - Rossendale, Hyndburn, South Ribble, Ribble Valley and Burnley - and three in neighbouring Greater Manchester have higher rates than Preston.

Fans will be seated at tables in the specially created fan zone for England's group games against Croatia and Scotland on 13 and 18 June.

Tickets have been sold to people across the region and as far afield as Brighton, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

"We are encouraging everybody to take a test before they come," Dr Karunanithi said.

"These are the type of things that really give me concern - large events which involve close contact, even though it's outdoors.

"These are potential super-spreader events."

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Outdoor gatherings are currently limited to 30 people but events such as the fan zone, with necessary measures in place, can have up to 4,000 people.

Preston's Business Improvement District, which is staging the screenings, said public safety was "paramount".

A spokesman said social distancing measures would in place as well as temperature checks, and people would be asked to wear masks when arriving and leaving.

A screening is also planned for England's final Group D game against the Czech Republic on 22 June, although what measures are in place will depend on the government's announcement regarding the roadmap plan for 21 June.

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