"Doing the best we can"

Austria-Turkey: More police for public viewing

The time has come: the European Championship round of 16 match between Austria and Turkey on Tuesday is just around the corner and with it increased security measures for public viewing in the capital. "The Vienna police will do everything possible to prevent criminal acts at best," emphasizes police spokesman Mattias Schuster. 

The European Football Championship is not only a major sporting event, but also poses a particular challenge for the security authorities. On Tuesday in particular, an increased number of people can be expected at the public viewing venues and throughout Vienna due to the Austrian participation and numerous Turkey fans.

"Prevent criminal acts"
"In any case, inspection services of the Vienna police are planned for all fan zones, including for the upcoming Austria-Turkey European Championship match, in accordance with the Vienna Events Act", Schuster told the "Krone". Criminal acts can unfortunately never be completely ruled out in public places, events or other incidents where many people come together in one place.

However, Schuster emphasizes: "The Vienna police will do everything possible with a comprehensive security concept to prevent criminal acts, especially against life and limb, in the best case scenario."

More police at public viewings
Sufficient officers will be deployed at the four public viewing venues in particular: Rathausplatz, Hauptbahnhof, Prater and Prater/Admiral. "We will be deploying more officers, both uniformed and civilian, of course," says Schuster. 

With a comprehensive security concept, the Vienna police will do everything possible to prevent criminal acts, in particular against life and limb, at best.

Polizeisprecher Mattias Schuster

In addition, police officers will be deployed outside the respective venues in order to be able to react quickly to any football-related celebrations or due to clashes between fan groups. 

Increased security precautions
At the beginning of the European Championships, the police announced that due to current assessments regarding terrorist and extremist acts, the Vienna Provincial Police Directorate had generally increased security precautions for large gatherings of people. There are currently no indications of a specific threat.