Euro 2016

Jerome Champagne: 'Euro 2016 must go ahead'

By Steven Toplis, Reporter | 16 November 2015

FIFA presidential candidate Jerome Champagne insists that Euro 2016 in France should not be cancelled in the light of Friday's terror attacks in Paris.

FIFA presidential candidate and former French diplomat Jerome Champagne has insisted that next year's European Championships in France should not be cancelled in the wake of Friday's terror attacks.

Noel Le Graet, president of the French Football Federation, has admitted that he is concerned over safety measures for the tournament following the events in Paris, which saw 129 people lose their lives following a number of terrorist incidents across the city.

Champagne is confident that France has all the necessary resources to ensure that the championships will go ahead safely.

He told BBC Radio 5 live: "We cannot cave in to these attacks and that's why we need to of course take all the security measures but Euro 2016 has to take place in France because we should preserve our lifestyle, we should preserve our values and that's why we have to fight.

"We need to protect the players, to protect the fans but we need to play."

Three explosions took place near the Stade de France on Friday as France played Germany in a friendly.