UEFA to Try Standing Facilities for Spectators

UEFA has launched a programme to observe the use of standing facilities for spectators attending matches of clubs participating in its men’s club competitions during the upcoming 2022/23 season.
Football supporters across Europe as well as clubs who regularly use standing facilities at domestic level have expressed increasing interest for UEFA to consider standing facilities at European matches, a UEFA release said July 27.
In December 2021, UEFA commissioned Politecnico di Milano to conduct an independent study to examine the prevalence, domestic regulatory framework, technologies and safety management of existing standing facilities within professional football in Europe.
The study noted the widely different approaches in the application and regulatory framework across countries and sometimes also between regions and cities in the same country. A variety of different technical solutions are also used with significantly different impacts on safety and security management.
With the approval of the UEFA Executive Committee, UEFA is launching the Standing Facilities Observer Programme 2022/23 to observe the use of such facilities in domestic as well as international club competition matches. The objective is to assess if and under what conditions standing may be reintroduced in UEFA competitions in a safe manner.
Given its observatory nature, the programme will be limited, at least in its introductory season, to clubs from the top five associations in the UEFA rankings where standing is already authorised and implemented at domestic level, i.e. England, Germany and France, in compliance with national and local legislation. The programme will be carried out during the group stage and knockout phases up to and including the semi-finals of the 2022/23 UEFA men’s club competitions. The finals are excluded.