POLAND: FOOTBALL/SOCCER - UEFA President Michel Platini says he will be working along with the Polish and Ukrainian governments to ensure security is tight for Euro 2012

Record ID: 861929

  • Title: POLAND: FOOTBALL/SOCCER - UEFA President Michel Platini says he will be working along with the Polish and Ukrainian governments to ensure security is tight for Euro 2012
  • Date: 13th April 2012
  • Summary: WARSAW, POLAND (APRIL 12, 2012) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF WARSAW'S NATIONAL STADIUM WORKERS IN FRONT OF STADIUM VARIOUS OF STADIUM EXTERIOR VARIOUS OF POLISH SPORTS MINISTER JOANNA MUCHA AND UEFA PRESIDENT MICHEL PLATINI (LEFT) WALKING ONTO THE PITCH STADIUM (SOUNDBITE) (French) UEFA PRESIDENT MICHEL PLATINI, SAYING: "I always repeat that I prefer the glass to be half full rather than half empty, and according to this I think that we will have a fantastic tournament and we will not need the police." VARIOUS OF STADIUM (SOUNDBITE) (French) UEFA PRESIDENT MICHEL PLATINI, SAYING: "Of course we will need to partly reject this idealistic perspective because we will most probably need to expect situations when we will need to protect fans from hooligans and other unexpected incidents." MORE VARIOUS of STADIUM (SOUNDBITE) (French) UEFA PRESIDENT MICHEL PLATINI, SAYING: "We need to remember that we are equally responsible for the progress of the tournament - the Polish government and UEFA - and the only thing which will be disturbing us will be the matter of security. (Polish translation). Like I said in the Ukraine to the Ukrainian president, we are responsible for the people who come to watch the games to do so with a sense of complete security." PITCH SEATS
  • Embargoed: 28th April 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Poland
  • City:
  • Country: Poland
  • Topics: Sports
  • Reuters ID: LVA8EXTEAM91UVBWK56N09KFL3MB
  • Aspect Ratio:
  • Story Text: UEFA President Michel Platini stressed the importance of sufficient security for the Euro 2012 soccer tournament on Thursday (April 12) after reports in the Polish media that the country's Police force may not be able to provide the planned number of officers for the event.
    "I always repeat that I prefer the glass to be half full rather than half empty, and according to this I think that we will have a fantastic tournament and we will not need the police," Platini said, speaking to media at Warsaw's National Stadium.
    "Of course we will need to partly reject this idealistic perspective because we will most probably need to expect situations when we will need to protect fans from hooligans and other unexpected incidents.
    "We need to remember that we are equally responsible for the progress of the tournament - the Polish government and UEFA - and the only thing which will be disturbing us will be the matter of security.
    "Like I said in the Ukraine to the Ukrainian president, we are responsible for the people who come to watch the games to do so with a sense of complete security," Platini said.
    According to estimates by the Polish government and research groups, the number of fans expected to visit Poland during the whole tournament is between 670,000 and one million.
    Platini arrived in Warsaw after a visit to the Ukraine as part of preparations for the soccer tournament which will be hosted by the two countries this summer.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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