(VOVWORLD) - The Euro 2020 soccer tournament was on Thursday blamed for a surge in coronavirus cases as fans have flocked to stadiums, bars and spectator zones across Europe to watch the action while the pandemic still raged.
Germany's interior minister called European soccer's governing body UEFA "utterly irresponsible" for allowing big crowds at the tournament.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said the mixing of crowds in Euro 2020 host cities, travel and easing of social restrictions had driven up the number of new cases rose by 10%.
A 10-week decline in new infections across Europe had come to an end and a new wave is inevitable if football fans and others drop their guard, WHO senior emergency officer Catherine Smallwood said in Copenhagen.
UEFA said it was fully aligned with local health authorities' guidelines at every venue. But German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said UEFA's position was "utterly irresponsible".
Seehofer said a match with 60,000 spectators would inevitably promote the spread of COVID-19.
Scotland's health authority said nearly 2,000 people had been identified as attending a Euro 2020 event while infectious.
Finland said more than 300 nationals were infected while supporting their team.