Alcohol ban ahead of England Euro 2016 match

Authorities in France have decided to limit the sale of alcohol ahead of England and Russia’s next Euro 2016 matches.

Alcohol sales in Lille will be restricted until Friday morning (Photo: Twitter)

England play Wales in their second Group B match in Lens at 2pm today after drawing with Russia in their first match of the tournament. Russia were beaten by Slovakia in their second match on Wednesday.

Shops selling alcohol are to be closed until Friday in Lille, where many England and Russian supporters are based, while around 350 bars made the decision to close early yesterday and today, BBC Sport said.

Michel Lalande, prefect of the Nord-Pas-de-Calais Picardy region, said the drinking ban would cover parts of central Lille and the Stade Pierre Mauroy stadium.

Shops selling alcohol in the city closed at 6pm on Tuesday and will not reopen until 6am on Friday, Lalande said.

However, the BBC reported that small supermarkets were continuing to sell alcohol, while one supporters’ group member said that ther are so many outlets that the ban is not enforceable.

The English Football Association has expressed “serious concerns” about security at Euro 2016 following violence between English and Russian supporters last week.

Russia has been hit with a suspended disqualification from the tournament, meaning they will be disqualified should any further trouble occur.

Supporter of the two teams are set to converge on Lille – ahead of England’s match against Wales today. Lille is a short distnace from the match venue of Lens. Russia played Slovakia in Lille on Wednesday.

The drinks business reported on Monday how the French government had called on host cities to consider restricting the sale of alcohol near match venues and fan zones following violence in Marseille last weekend.