The construction of a football village, the main fan zone of the long-awaited European Championship 2020, which was postponed for a whole year due to coronavirus, has begun on Konyushennaya Square in the Northern Capital. She will receive fans on June 11 – the day of the tournament start.
The place on Konyushennaya is well known to football fans: they were rooting for the Russian national team here during the 2017 Confederations Cup and the 2018 World Cup. For the new sports festival, 11-meter towers with screens for watching matches, zones for various activities, food courts and points of sale of fan attributes are being installed on the square. Because of these works, it was necessary to restrict the movement of cars on the nearby streets, but there are no massive indignations about this, because every driver is a fan.
The entrance to the fan zone will be free, but it will be closed when the square is filled to certain limits: the coronavirus dictates its own rules for now. Fans are also instructed to wear masks, maintain a one and a half meter distance, and not hug or shake hands. But negative tests for COVID-19 and vaccination certificates will not be required from them.
At noon on June 11, a fan fest starts in the football village on Konyushennaya. According to its organizers, a mini-football field will be open all day on the square, where tournaments and competitions will be held. Guests will find photo and video zones, interactive games for all ages, as well as performances by musicians. The highlight of the day will be watching the Euro 2020 opening match between Italy and Turkey.
The place on Konyushennaya is well known to football fans: they were rooting for the Russian national team here during the 2017 Confederations Cup and the 2018 World Cup
The fan zone on Konyushennaya will work from noon to midnight, until the final whistle of the last match of the tournament sounds on July 11. And it will be closed only for two cleaning days – June 25 and 30.
Another area for fans – on Palace Square – will open on July 2, when the quarterfinals start. Here you can watch games on the big screen, but such a large-scale entertainment program as at Konyushennaya is not expected.
Flags of Euro 2020 are already fluttering on the Palace Bridge. Photo: Sergey Nikolaev
But this year in the Northern capital, fans will have two additional fan zones. On June 11, next to the Yubileiny Sports Palace, a football park will open for those who are sick with whole families. Children will be allowed there. Another platform for fans is being set up in Nikolsky Ryad.
In addition, the city has placed 378 navigation signs that will help find the way to the Gazprom Arena stadium and other venues for Euro 2020 events.
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