Wembley set to be half full for Euro 2020 semi-finals and final

British Prime Minister

Boris Johnson

announced a four-week delay in lifting lockdown restrictions in England due to rising cases of the Delta variant. However, Wimbledon and the European Championship will not be affected by the delay as they are added to the third stage of the government’s Events Research Programme. There will be a full house of 15,000 spectators on Centre Court for the grass-court grand slam, with the competition being the first outdoor sporting event to have a capacity crowd since the start of the pandemic.

A statement from the

All England Club

said:

"We are pleased to have worked closely with the government, public health bodies, and our local authority in Merton, to confirm that, as part of this next phase of pilot events, The Championships 2021 will begin on Monday 28 June with 50 per cent capacity across the Grounds, building to full capacity crowds of 15,000 on Centre Court for the finals weekend.

"This will enable us to fulfil our aspiration of staging the best Wimbledon possible within the current circumstances, with the health and safety of all those who make Wimbledon happen - our guests, competitors, members, staff, media, officials, local residents, and partners - remaining our highest priority."

Crowds for England's first two Euro 2020 matches have been capped at 22,500, but the rules will be further eased for the final four matches of the tournament, allowing the stadium to be half-full.

Culture Secretary

Oliver Dowden

said:

"We want to gather further evidence on how we can open up all big events safely, and for good.

"The expansion of trials of the NHS app and lateral flow testing will mean that bigger crowds will be able to attend a limited number of major sporting and cultural events early this summer as part of our events research programme.

"In the next few weeks, this means more fans enjoying the Euros and Wimbledon, and some of our biggest cultural and sports events."

The semi-finals will be played on July 6 and 7, with the final held on July 11.

Follow

for the

.