Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK
EURO 2016

EURO 2016

France survive Irish scare to make quarter-final

Antoine Griezmann broke Irish hearts with two second-half goals as France came from behind to claim a 2-1 win over ten-man Republic of Ireland and move into the Euro 2016 quarter-finals on Sunday.

Published: 26 June 2016 17:13 CEST
France survive Irish scare to make quarter-final
Antoine Griezmann scored two second-half goals. Photo: AFP

Robbie Brady, who had netted the Republic's winner against Italy, had converted a penalty with just two minutes gone to give the Irish a shock lead.

 “At this stage of the tournament you don't have the right not to qualify,” French coach Didier Deschamps said, expressing relief at the fightback as French fans celebrated.

Ireland's problems were compounded by playing the last 25 minutes with ten men.
 
Centre-back Shane Duffy was sent off on 66 minutes for bringing down Griezmann, who was through on goal.

France's win came at a cost as both midfielder N'Golo Kante and defender Adil Rami are suspended for the quarter-final after picking up bookings.

Victory in the last 16 clash at the Stade de Lyon means France face either Iceland or England in the Stade de France quarter-final next Sunday.

EURO 2016

Euro 2016 gave France billion euro boost to struggling economy

Hosting the Euro 2016 football tournament cost France less than €200 million ($211 million) but brought some €1.22 billion into the country, according to figures released by the ministry of sports Tuesday.

Published: 10 January 2017 08:31 CET
Euro 2016 gave France billion euro boost to struggling economy
Photo:AFP

There was controversy over the public funds poured into the tournament, with some 24 million euros — double the expected cost — spent on security in light of an increased terrorist threat.

The state spent a further 160 million euros on building and renovating venues for the June and July event, while private funds and tournament organiser UEFA covered the remaining costs.

But Euro 2016 brought 1.221 billion euros into the country both in tourism and spending directly related to the organisation of the tournament, according to data compiled by the Centre of the Law and Economics of Sport at Limoges University (CDES) and the consultancy firm Keneo.

In calculating the figures, researchers took into account the loss from potential tourists who would have stayed away from France to avoid the tournament, as well as the state funds which could have been used elsewhere had they not been set aside for venues.

The average tournament visitor spent 154 euros a day, with most of that going on accommodation and eating out, the study said, with tourism providing a 625.8 million euro boost to the country.

UEFA spent some 360 million euros on organising the tournament in the country, while 24 participating teams gave the economy a 34.9 million euro boost.

Accredited persons for the event spent 34.8 million euros while in the country, and sponsors 22.6 million euros, according to the figures.

Last January the CDES predicted Euro 2017 would bring in 1.266 billion euros in additional expenditure, or 0.1 percent of France's GDP.

SHOW COMMENTS