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Fans banned from Barça v Napoli Champions League tie over coronavirus fears in Spain

Barcelona's Champions League round of 16 return match against Napoli on March 18th has been ordered to be played behind closed doors because of the coronavirus outbreak, both clubs announced Tuesday.

Published: 10 March 2020 12:32 CET
Fans banned from Barça v Napoli Champions League tie over coronavirus fears in Spain
Fans at El Clasico on March 1st wearing masks. Photo: AFP

“The Champions League match scheduled for Wednesday, March 18th, between FC Barcelona and Napoli, will be played at Camp Nou behind closed doors,” the Spanish giants said on Twitter.

Two other Champions League matches — Tuesday's tie between Valencia and Atalanta in Spain, and Wednesday's Paris Saint-Germain v Borussia Dortmund match — are scheduled to be played in empty stadiums in efforts to curb the
spread of the killer virus.   

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PSG's match at the Parc des Princes was forced behind closed doors after the French government announced a ban on all gatherings of more than 1,000 people in a country where 1,412 cases of COVID-19 infections have been recorded and 25 deaths.

The announcement was closely followed by the postponement of the Six Nations rugby match between France and Ireland scheduled for Saturday in Paris.

Spanish club Valencia's match against Atalanta was considered high risk and ordered behind closed doors because the Italian side come from Bergamo in the Lombardy region, one of the areas of Italy most affected by the virus.

Italy, Europe's worst-hit country with 9,172 cases and 463 deaths, on Monday banned all sporting events until April 3rd, suspending all Serie A football fixtures.   

Barcelona said the match would be played without spectators in line with recommendations from the regional Catalan government.   

The decision was taken following a meeting between club officials and Catalan medical staff earlier Tuesday.

“The decision was taken on medical grounds,” Catalonia's health chief Joan Graux said following the meeting.   

Napoli, meanwhile, were forced to deny press reports that they had asked for the match to be postponed.   

“Napoli abides by decisions taken by the Italian government and UEFA.” the club tweeted, describing the reports as fake news.

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HEALTH

Are Danes cutting back on cigarettes and alcohol?

Danish stores sold a significantly lower quantity of alcohol and cigarettes over the counter last year, new data from Statistics Denmark show.

Published: 14 June 2024 07:42 CEST
Are Danes cutting back on cigarettes and alcohol?

Some 3,852 cigarettes were sold year, which amounts to 804 per person over the age of 18. But that compares to a figures of 854 per person on 2022.

Cigarette sales in Denmark have been declining since 2018.

Sales of sprits, beer and wine fell by 7.8 percent, 5.3 percent and 0.9 percent respectively.

Danish business sold the equivalent of 44.4 million litres of pure alcohol, which works out at 11.9 units per week on average for each person over the age of 18.

Although that is a lower value than in 2022, it still exceeds the amount recommended by the Danish Health Authority (Sundhedsstyrelsen).

The Health Authority recommends that adults over 18 drink no more than 10 units per week and no more than four in a single day.

READ ALSO: Should Denmark raise the minimum age for buying alcohol?

“The numbers are still too high and it’s an average that could have a skewed distribution,” University of Southern Denmark professor, Janne Tholstrup, said in relation to the alcohol sales figures. Tholstrup has published research on Denmark’s alcohol culture.

That is in spite of a 30-year-trend of falling alcohol consumption, according to the professor.

“The majority of Danes stay under the recommended 10 unite per week. That means there is a large group with a persistently excessive consumption of alcohol,” she said.

The Statistics Denmark figures also show that sales of loose tobacco – such as the type used in roll-up cigarettes and pipes – also fell last year. Some 58 tonnes less were sold compared to 2022.

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