BIG screen televisions for the Euro 2020 fanzone will cost more than £84,000 — with the event still uncertain to go ahead.
The fanzone in Glasgow Green is organised by Glasgow Life, an arm’s length organisation of Glasgow City Council managing cultural and sporting events.
The event is set to kick off on Friday, amid fears that the gathering might cause a spike in cases and calls for additional testing.
However a public notice posted on the Public Contracts Scotland website revealed that £84,340 has been spent on the big screens and associated staging alone for the fanzone.
It reads: “This contract is to manage the digital content as well as the stage activations, overall presentation and supply of LED screens for the duration of the Fan Zones for the EUFA Euro 2020 tournament.”
The fanzone is likely to cost more than this, with the value of at least one more contract for cleaning services at the fanzone yet to be confirmed.
Its contract listing states Glasgow Life will pay for: “a specialist cleaning service to provide daily onsite cleaning services running up to and the duration of the EURO 2020 tournament.”
It adds: “The supplier will undertake a full scope of the cleaning operation required, including resource, scheduling, and creation of a full cleaning management plan.”
However, it has since emerged that Glasgow Life only handled the precurement of the screens - with the bill of more than £80,000 going to UEFA.
A spokeswoman said: "The UEFA EURO 2020 Glasgow Host City team can confirm that the cost of the screens in the Food and Beverage Area of the Fan Zone has been covered by UEFA."
On Tuesday, the Health Secretary warned the planned fanzone could be shut down if “significant concerns” are raised.
A final decision was expected this week, but in response to a question in Holyrood, Health Secretary Humza Yousaf spoke of the fan zone as though it was going ahead, but said it could be brought to a halt if there are worries about transmission of the virus.
He said: “I understand the concerns that some have expressed, especially in light of the hard sacrifices everyone has made.
“The proposal for a fan zone is not about prioritising football over other priorities, it’s about seeking to cater in as safe a way as possible for fans who want to watch the matches.”
Mr Yousaf also said, in response to a question from Lib Dem health spokesman Alex Cole-Hamilton, that he considered the fan zone to be a “low risk event”.
He added: “I want to make it clear that the situation with the virus, the application of necessary mitigations and the actual experience of the event will be monitored on an ongoing basis.
“Any changes considered necessary will be made, up to and including withdrawing permission, should significant concerns arise.”
The Scottish Government has also said there will not be mandatory testing in place at the event, despite the concerns of leading public health officials such as Professor Linda Bauld, the chair of public health at Edinburgh University.
However, Mr Yousaf said he would encourage every attendee to use a lateral flow test before they visit the fan zone, adding that Glasgow City Council will contact every ticket holder doing the same while providing a link to order tests from the Government.
“I would encourage every single person that has a ticket to any session of the fan zone to please test before arrival,” he said.
Euro 2020 is being played at venues across Europe this year after being postponed last year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
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