UEFA welcomes Council of Europe Convention on safety and security at sports events

028 – Fourteen countries sign the new Council of Europe Convention in Paris

The Council of Europe Convention on an integrated safety, security and service approach at football matches and other sports events was signed at a ceremony held at the Stade de France in the presence of several European ministers.

The Convention was signed by 14 states: Bulgaria, France, FYR Macedonia, Georgia, Greece, Lithuania, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Portugal, Russia, Switzerland and Ukraine.

The Convention aims to promote hospitality and safety of spectators inside and outside stadiums, improve dialogue between the police, local authorities, football clubs and supporters, strengthen international police cooperation, and prevent and punish hooliganism through effective measures.

It ultimately replaces the European Convention on Spectator Violence and Misbehaviour at Sports Events and in particular at Football Matches, drawn up in 1985 in the wake of the Heysel tragedy.

The Convention is now open to Council of Europe member and non-member states and will come into force following its ratification by three signatory states.

"This convention is a major step forward to boost the international cooperation needed to make football matches and other sporting events safe, secure and enjoyable for supporters. It also puts a big emphasis on preventing violence before it escalates, and on enabling the whole network of bodies involved in sports events to work together more effectively.

"It's an opportune moment, with preparations under way for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, and UEFA EURO 2020, which will be held in 13 countries around Europe," said Council of Europe secretary general Thorbjørn Jagland.

"The Convention we are signing today sends out a strong signal of our commitment to preventing and combating violence in the stadiums, by placing the dialogue between the different actors, and the relationship between the public authorities and the fans, at the centre of the organisation of major international sporting events," added Thierry Braillard, France's state secretary for sport.

"UEFA is very pleased that the Council of Europe and European states take the security and safety of all participants in sports events very seriously," concluded Michael van Praag, UEFA Executive Committee member and chairman of the UEFA Stadium and Security Committee, "and we are looking forward to continuously working closely with all stakeholders to ensure peaceful and safe football matches across the continent."

The signing ceremony held today in Paris, during UEFA EURO 2016, further strengthens the relationship between the UEFA and the Council of Europe in the interests of the long-term development of sport in general, and football in particular.