EM 2024 - Netherlands miss press conference due to rail travel chaos
Again, the notoriously unreliable German Railways disrupted the EM schedule. Due to a "significant delay" in the journey from the team quarters in Wolfsburg to the venue in Dortmund, the Netherlands' final press conference before the EURO semi-final against England was suddenly cancelled at short notice.
The Netherlands takes the plane instead
Since the train scheduled for the afternoon had such a large delay due to a track blockage, the Dutch team eventually took a flight in the evening. According to the newspaper "Algemeen Dagblad", the team was informed by the tournament organizers that there was no traffic possible on an alternative train route because a train had hit an animal there. The press conference was scheduled for 19.45 hours.
England's national coach Gareth Southgate took the situation calmly. "We will remain calm in such a situation. The game is only tomorrow at 9 pm, there is still enough time. You will certainly still get evening meals. That won't have any influence on the game", Southgate said, whose English team arrived punctually from the team camp in Blankenhain.
Standard Uefa-Procedure
The press conference with the coach and a player is part of the standard procedure for major tournaments by Uefa and Fifa. Uefa announced that journalists would instead be given access to interview material with Chief Coach Koeman. The match takes place on Wednesday at 9 pm. It can be seen on ARD and MagentaTV and followed live in the stern-Liveticker.
- The disruption caused by German Railways affected Gareth Southgate and his England team as well, as their journey from Wolfsburg to Dortmund was delayed.
- Despite the delay, the UEFA regulations ensured that Gareth Southgate still had an opportunity to address the media before the semi-final against the Netherlands, albeit through a different medium.
- In light of the train delay, Gareth Southgate and his team arrived in Dortmund via a different mode of transport, just like the Netherlands' Elftal, who had to take a flight instead of traveling by train.
- The UEFA procedure, which includes press conferences with coaches like Gareth Southgate and key players, was adapted in this situation, allowing journalists to access interview materials with Netherlands' coach Koeman instead.
