The German police have reportedly issued a warning to football fans ahead of the Euros and encouraged them to smoke cannabis instead of drinking alcohol.
Earlier in the week, that the German police force had demanded the VELTINS Arena serve England fans low-alcohol beer ahead of their opening game with Serbia.
The Sun have now revealed that the Gelsenkirchen police force would prefer for England fans to smoke cannabis than drink as it would make them ‘calmer’ and ‘chilled out’.
A Gelsenkirchen Police spokesman reportedly told The Sun: ‘It’s no problem for fans to smoke cannabis on the street.
‘If we see a group of people drinking alcohol and looking a bit aggressive, and another group smoking cannabis, of course we’ll look at the group drinking alcohol.
‘Drinking alcohol can make someone more aggressive, and smoking cannabis puts people in a chill mood. We want to prevent violence and keep people safe.
‘Our focus will be on fans who are drinking and potentially getting violent — that’s why we in place safety precautions on alcohol.’
On April 1, Germany joined the list of countries that have legalised cannabis for personal use.
The country’s parliament passed a law that will legalise the cultivation and consumption of a limited amount of the drug.
The decision was made to regularise the behaviour of the 4.5 million Germans who are estimated to use it.
However, fans will be prohibited from smoking cannabis inside the 62,000-seat Veltins Arena and will be prevented from lighting up in the fan zones.
Fans have also been asked to refrain from smoking weed in bars or city squares during the Euros this summer.
Speaking about the threat to civilisation earlier in the week, Chief Inspector Christof Burghardt told Sky News England’s opening game would be ‘high-risk’.
‘I think it’s a very high-risk game because of the history, because of the hooligans both sides have,’ Burghardt said.
‘Serbia has many hooligans. The English guys, with alcohol, they are very aggressive. So it’s a great job to do this, to prepare, so that hopefully nothing will happen.’
He added: ‘The biggest challenge for us will be to identify violent, disruptive groups at an early stage, to separate them from peaceful and law-abiding fans.’
