FOOTBALLING body Uefa have responded to claims that bagpipes are set to be banned at Scotland’s Euro 2024 games.
There had been concerns that the tournament, which will open when Scotland play Germany on June 14, had ruled that fans were to be barred from bringing bagpipes to games.
However, Uefa – the Union of European Football Associations – said that registered bagpipes would be allowed in.
Concerns of a bagpipe ban had been sparked by Uefa’s official stadium rules for Euro 2024.
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These state that “bags of any kind” are banned, as well as: “Mechanical or electronic noisemakers, such as megaphones and air horns, as well as other sound-emitting and speech-amplification devices, such as pea whistles and vuvuzelas.”
Alba general secretary Chris McEleny, a member of the Tartan Army, had said: “We are long past the day of Scots facing penalties for playing outlawed tunes on outlawed pipes. The Tartan army are welcomed with open arms anywhere and everywhere we travel.”
He went on: “The sight of Scotland fans in their kilts being led to stadiums by pipe playing members of the Tartan Army is welcomed universally. It would be utterly ridiculous if Uefa then banned these supporters entering the stadium with their bagpipes and it is nothing other than an attack on Scottish culture.
“Give me the sound of the pipes leading Scotland fans on to roar the team to victory over loud artificial PA systems every day of the week. Uefa must think again.”
Asked if bagpipes would be banned from stadiums in the Euro 2024 competition, Uefa said that people would be allowed to bring musical instruments as long as they registered beforehand.
A Uefa spokesperson said: “Fans are welcome to bring instruments to the stadium, but they will have to register them with their respective national associations, who will be responsible for centralising their fans’ activities inside the stadium.
“The process was presented to all participating national associations at last week’s fan forum.”
Uefa also shared a link to a press release on their website about the fan forum.
Alba welcomed what they termed a "speedy U-turn".
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