Downtown Reykjavík was packed with people after Sunday‘s game against Kazakhstan, which secured Iceland will advance to the EURO 2016 finals in Paris next year. The party began at Ingólfstorg square where the Icelandic team greeted hundreds of fans who had gathered to watch the game on a giant screen. From there the party moved indoors where football fans celebrated the night away.
Police stops partying footballers
Police had to close two bars which stayed open after 1 AM. All bars and restaurants must be closed by 1 AM on Sundays in Iceland. Bars and restaurants can only stay open longer on Fridays and Saturdays, or days which are followed by a public holiday.
According to the local football website fotbolti.net one of the two places shut down by Police was the bar b5 in Bankastræti street, between Laugavegur street and the downtown square. The website reported that members of the Icelandic national football team were among the guests when the police showed up. Fótbolti.net has a video of the police entering the bar to clear the crowds out. You can watch it here.
Related: Watch the celebration in the locker room of the Icelandic team after last night’s victory: Video
As this video posted to Twitter by Icelandic Football shows, spirits were high at the bar, as those present were determined to flout the law.
The Police is here and nobody cares. According to the law the clubs shut down at 1.00 am. So what? We go on! pic.twitter.com/2TE1aYPxOP
— Icelandic Football (@icelandfootball) September 7, 2015
Prime minister encouraged bars to break the law
It was not just a couple of bar operators or partying footballers and fans who failed to understand that the law still applied despite the results of this football match. The Prime Minister of Iceland made an announcement on Facebook that he regretted he did not have the power to announce a national day of celebration today, as well as having issued the national football team his personal guarantee that all bars would stay open as long as they wished tonight.
“Actually, I told the football team after the game that all bars would stay open for them tonight as long as they wanted. As I reflect on this now, I realize I didn‘t have the formal authority to do that either… but I don‘t expect anyone will try to force those guys to sleep tonight.”
As fótbolti.net puts it, the prime minister had personally given his word to the boys [the national football team] that bars would stay open longer on Sunday. As it turned out the Prime Minister does not have the authority to override the law on a whim or issue permits for bars in Reykjavík to stay open longer than legally permitted.
Til hamingju með að upplifa einhvern stærsta dag íslenskrar-, ég meina evrópskrar-, íþróttasögu …til þessa! Nú sé ég…
Posted by Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson on Sunday, September 6, 2015
Downtown Reykjavík was packed with people after Sunday‘s game against Kazakhstan, which secured Iceland will advance to the EURO 2016 finals in Paris next year. The party began at Ingólfstorg square where the Icelandic team greeted hundreds of fans who had gathered to watch the game on a giant screen. From there the party moved indoors where football fans celebrated the night away.
Police stops partying footballers
Police had to close two bars which stayed open after 1 AM. All bars and restaurants must be closed by 1 AM on Sundays in Iceland. Bars and restaurants can only stay open longer on Fridays and Saturdays, or days which are followed by a public holiday.
According to the local football website fotbolti.net one of the two places shut down by Police was the bar b5 in Bankastræti street, between Laugavegur street and the downtown square. The website reported that members of the Icelandic national football team were among the guests when the police showed up. Fótbolti.net has a video of the police entering the bar to clear the crowds out. You can watch it here.
Related: Watch the celebration in the locker room of the Icelandic team after last night’s victory: Video
As this video posted to Twitter by Icelandic Football shows, spirits were high at the bar, as those present were determined to flout the law.
The Police is here and nobody cares. According to the law the clubs shut down at 1.00 am. So what? We go on! pic.twitter.com/2TE1aYPxOP
— Icelandic Football (@icelandfootball) September 7, 2015
Prime minister encouraged bars to break the law
It was not just a couple of bar operators or partying footballers and fans who failed to understand that the law still applied despite the results of this football match. The Prime Minister of Iceland made an announcement on Facebook that he regretted he did not have the power to announce a national day of celebration today, as well as having issued the national football team his personal guarantee that all bars would stay open as long as they wished tonight.
“Actually, I told the football team after the game that all bars would stay open for them tonight as long as they wanted. As I reflect on this now, I realize I didn‘t have the formal authority to do that either… but I don‘t expect anyone will try to force those guys to sleep tonight.”
As fótbolti.net puts it, the prime minister had personally given his word to the boys [the national football team] that bars would stay open longer on Sunday. As it turned out the Prime Minister does not have the authority to override the law on a whim or issue permits for bars in Reykjavík to stay open longer than legally permitted.
Til hamingju með að upplifa einhvern stærsta dag íslenskrar-, ég meina evrópskrar-, íþróttasögu …til þessa! Nú sé ég…
Posted by Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson on Sunday, September 6, 2015
