Security was on high alert in Stockholm on Tuesday ahead of the Europa League final between Manchester United and Ajax after a suicide bombing in Manchester killed at least 22 people.
The head of security at the Swedish Football Association, that co-organises Wednesday’s UEFA Europa League final, Martin Fredman, said security was already on high alert after Sweden suffered an attack in April when a truck drove into a crowd killing five people.
Speaking on whether special measures were put in place following the attack in Manchester, Fredman, said, “I would really say no because we have already been on such a top level on the security work. We have done a lot of things and we have these kinds of happenings in our plans and the police have it in their plans.
“You know in Stockholm there was a terrorist attack on April 7 so I really feel that the impact of (the suicide attack in) Manchester will not make us work in another way than what we’ve planned before.”
Manchester United meet Dutch side Ajax at the Friends Arena on Wednesday night.
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Fredman explained that considering that both teams are top European teams, the threat surrounding the event when it comes to public order is big.
He said, “Of course we were already on a high alert security-wise from the beginning, both staff-wise and also how we are planning on sealing these areas to areas to handle it. When both finalists were ready, this was, of course, stepped up a notch.
“These are two top teams in Europe, both teams are known for many supporters and there are elements of risk in the supporter milieu – you can’t turn a blind eye to that – when it comes to both of the teams. We also have information about many people without tickets who plan to come to Stockholm.
“All this together means that the threat surrounding the event, when it comes to public order, is quite big and for that reason, we’ve taken several measures to determine who will be allowed near the arena tomorrow.”
