Fans at next summer’s Paris Olympics will not be able to buy alcohol inside stadiums after organisers decided not to seek an exemption to ‘Evin’s Law’.

VIP guests in hospitality areas will be served with alcoholic drinks.

The French law bans the sale of alcohol in stadiums to the general public, but allows for exemptions to a limited number of events per year.

However, a spokesperson told Reuters a law change would have been required to accommodate the size of the 2024 event.

“Paris 2024 will be organising more than 700 competition sessions over 15 days of competition,” said the spokesperson.

“It is the strict application of French law that allows catering services that include the provision of alcohol to operate in hospitality areas as they are governed by a separate law on catering.

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At the Rugby World Cup, which takes place in France this year, fans will be able to drink inside venues after organisers negotiated an exemption for the tournament.

At the Champions League final in 2022, supporters were also allowed to consume alcohol inside the Stade de France in Paris throughout the match from 6pm local time, but drinking and purchasing alcohol was prohibited in public spaces around the stadium’s vicinity.

Beer and wine was available at the London 2012 Olympics and at Rio 2016 but at the delayed Tokyo 2020 Games, which were held in 2021 and went ahead with no spectators, alcohol sales were prohibited.

In November, Fifa changed its policy two days before the start of the World Cup in Qatar to ban alcohol sales in all of the major tournament’s eight stadiums.

Mike Tayese, Yenagoa

Residents of Yenagoa want the government at all levels to find a lasting solution to the fuel situation in the country by revamping the nation’s refineries even as they pay through their noses to buy premium motor spirit.

They made the call against the backdrop of the rising cost of the product in the Bayelsa State capital.

Motorists and Residents of Yenagoa said they are losing a lot of productive hours at filling stations each day as they strive to buy fuel at an affordable price.

At the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited Filling Station along the Sani Abacha Expressway, the pump price for the product is 179 Naira per liter.

This attracts long queues much to the frustration of residents including a commercial motorcycle operator who gave his name as Gods power.

A bus driver, Mr. Kehinde who said he had to sleep at the filling station, urged the government and relevant agencies to take measures to tackle the issue, including revamping the refineries.

A driver with one of the transport companies, Mr. Chinedu echoed similar thoughts on the dire need to fix the refineries as a solution to the fuel situation.

Though the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva said the Port Harcourt refinery which was being revamped will soon commence operations, the fuel situation in Yenagoa and many parts of Bayelsa State is giving the people serious cause for worry.

While the pump price of fuel goes for 250 Naira in some of the major marketing outlets with long queues, others sell for as high as 350 Naira to 380 Naira per liter.

The situation is further compounded by the poor power supply situation in most parts of the State capital as residents troop to the filling stations in their numbers with jerry cans for their generating sets to power their homes, businesses and offices.