Euro 2020 play-off final: Fans number for NI v Slovakia showdown still to decided

Six hundred fans attended the NI v Austria game at Windsor Park last month

Communities minister Caral Ni Chuilin says work is under way to ensure the "maximum number of supporters" can safely attend Windsor Park for next week's Euro 2020 play-off final.

The Irish Football Association (IFA) hopes to admit at least 600 fans to the NI v Slovakia match next Thursday.

Ms Ni Chuilin previously urged sporting bodies to stop allowing crowds into matches, due to Covid-19 health advice.

On Tuesday, she said she wanted to make the game as "stress-free as possible".

She told the Stormont assembly that she had spoken to the IFA and was also working with Belfast City Council and other sporting authorities involved.

"I will do what I can to make sure the maximum number of supporters can attend Windsor Park," she added.

Numbers game

DUP MLA Jonathan Buckley asked the minister what numbers of spectators were being considered, as the stadium has a capacity of 18,500.

Ms Ni Chuilin said she did not want to speculate on that, and would "respect the IFA and Belfast City Council".

"We want to have a number of spectators there with safe social distancing and within the guidelines, and I will do what I can to make that happen for them."

The executive's coronavirus regulations do not prohibit spectators attending outdoor sporting events, but Ulster Rugby and the GAA have already said they will play without fans during the current period of restrictions.

The IFA's chief executive Patrick Nelson has previously said only a "modest" crowd was anticipated at the final in Belfast.