Danish Authorities Refuse to Allow Russian Fans to Attend the EURO 2020 Match

As it was previously reported in connection with media requests, at the end of May the Danish Ministry of Culture, which oversees sports, informed that due to the strict COVID measures, a general rule was adopted: to close the entry into Denmark from abroad for all UEFA EURO 2020 fans.

Taking into account this official information from the Danish authorities, we were surprised to learn that Finnish fans were able to attend the match between the national teams of Denmark and Finland on June 12 in Copenhagen. Apparently, the Belgian fans did not have any problems with admission to the Denmark-Belgium game on June 17. And this is happening despite the fact that, judging by the website of the Danish Foreign Ministry, Russia, Finland and Belgium are in the same category of countries in terms of the spread of coronavirus – all of them are "orange"(https://um.dk/da/rejse-og-ophold/rejse-til-udlandet/rejsevejledninger/).

We received unconvincing excuses for our inquiries at the Danish Foreign Ministry. Allegedly, the ban is connected to the difference in the Schengen rules for the entry into Denmark of citizens of the EU and third countries and the situation is dictated only by COVID restrictions. However, the discrimination is clear.

The current situation with Russian fans is a vivid example of double standards and the Danish authorities’ Russophobia. Denmark's ability to host international sport events, which inherently should remain out of politics, is highly questionable.

We urge Denmark to eliminate any restrictions for our fans and ensure their access to UEFA EURO 2020 matches, including one between the national teams of Russia and Denmark on June 21.