Real Madrid win 14th European title in 1-0 UEFA Champions League 2021/22 final win over Liverpool

[GenericBrand]

RM showing their class

 

[OldWarHorse]

TAA was toyed with tonight. Otherwise GK was the difference, as it was when the last time these two teams met in a final

 

[Amjid Javed]

Real Madrid beat PSG, Chelsea, Man City and Liverpool.

Deserved to be champions.

Best ever CL win for 4 teams they have beat. You wont see a better effort.

 

[Technics 1210]

[/b]

Great prediction )

Should have listened to my analysis, you would have learned a thing or two about football.

As I said, Trent’s amateurish defending proved to be fatal for Liverpool. Gave Vinicius acres of space. Unforgivable error.

You got lucky, a 50/50 prediction, fluked a correct prediction, which is a far cry from your 25 Messi goals in the farmer’s league prediction.

 

[Mamoon]

Liverpool is a brilliant team and Klopp is a brilliant manager, but they are bottlers.

In the last 4 years, they have lost two PL titles by 1 point and have lost 2 UCL finals.
This shows that they falter in crunch moments. Both City and Madrid have had their number when they have been involved in a scrap.


Their only league title in 2020 came when they were too far ahead from the beginning, they were never really tested at any point. City weren’t very good that season, finished with 81 points only.

Luckily for them, they faced Spurs and Pochettino in the 2019 final, the biggest bottlers of them all.

 

[Mamoon]

TAA was toyed with tonight. Otherwise GK was the difference, as it was when the last time these two teams met in a final

Trent is an excellent footballer, but the notion that he is the best RB in the world has always been a myth.

Klopp’s system hides his defensive frailties, he is poor for England and will be poor for other clubs, who will probably play him in midfield or an RM.

No way would most teams play him as a RB. He is simply not a natural defender.

 

[Azzurri]

Liverpool players and fans humbled. Hala Madrid

 

[topspin]

Trent is an excellent footballer, but the notion that he is the best RB in the world has always been a myth.

Klopp’s system hides his defensive frailties, he is poor for England and will be poor for other clubs, who will probably play him in midfield or an RM.

No way would most teams play him as a RB. He is simply not a natural defender.

Spot on.

Kyle Walker >>> TAA.

 

[topspin]

You got lucky, a 50/50 prediction, fluked a correct prediction, which is a far cry from your 25 Messi goals in the farmer’s league prediction.

It wasn't a 50/50 prediction. Liverpool were strong favourites according to the bookies.

Stick to your crap DJing in third rate clubs.

 

[topspin]

Michael owen embarrasing himself calling liverpool best team in europe. Sore loser.

His prediction was embarrassing. It was good to see him humbled but he didn't take it well.

Don't know why BT have him as a pundit. The guy is cringe.

 

[Mamoon]

Spot on.

Kyle Walker >>> TAA.

Walker, Reece, Hakimi, Cancelo, Mendy, Robertson - All of them are better all-round full-backs than Trent. Also, Carvajal is past his prime but he is still a much better defender.

Trent has unreal quality on the ball, but whenever Liverpool play a team that has a world class LW/LF, he gets exposed and Liverpool struggle to win.

Not only does he have poor defensive awareness, he lacks pace and athleticism.

 

[IAJ]

Spot on.

Kyle Walker >>> TAA.

Lol, KW is 32 and TAA is 23. With KW you know he can’t get better but TAA has plenty of time to work on his weaker side, defending. Give him time.

 

[Mamoon]

Courtois’ interview was telling - summed up the delusional mindset of the PL fans.

He has been the best keeper in the world for the past 12 months but PL fans won’t shut up about Alisson and Ederson.

Chelsea sold him for less than £40m and bought Kepa for £70m.

The fact that PL fans think Madrid won’t have more than 70 points in the PL when Arsenal had 69 and Spurs had 71 sums up their overconfidence and delusion.

Madrid is brimming with world class players who elite mentality. They win the PL if not finish in the top 2.

 

[topspin]

Lol, KW is 32 and TAA is 23. With KW you know he can’t get better but TAA has plenty of time to work on his weaker side, defending. Give him time.

What I do know is that I rather have KW starting for England ahead of TAA in the World Cup later this year.

After the WC, I think Reece James is his ideal replacement.

 

[topspin]

Courtois’ interview was telling - summed up the delusional mindset of the PL fans.

He has been the best keeper in the world for the past 12 months but PL fans won’t shut up about Alisson and Ederson.

Chelsea sold him for less than £40m and bought Kepa for £70m.

The fact that PL fans think Madrid won’t have more than 70 points in the PL when Arsenal had 69 and Spurs had 71 sums up their overconfidence and delusion.

Madrid is brimming with world class players who elite mentality. They win the PL if not finish in the top 2.

Honestly it's so annoying how much nonsense and how self-centered PL fans are and how disrespectful they are towards other leagues.

Quite a few them regard La Liga as a Farmers League.

Courtois rightly pointed out that he didn't get the respect that he deserved from England after leaving Chelsea.

 

[IAJ]

What I do know is that I rather have KW starting for England ahead of TAA in the World Cup later this year.

After the WC, I think Reece James is his ideal replacement.

I just don’t trust KW, he plays well for the most part of the match but then makes a blunder and his final touch is often clumsy.

Reece James is a very hard working player, always liked him.

 

[Amjid Javed]

His prediction was embarrassing. It was good to see him humbled but he didn't take it well.

Don't know why BT have him as a pundit. The guy is cringe.

Even gerrard wudnt give much credit. Then u had macca as co commentator who was just as bad.

 

[Firebat]

Liverpool 0-1 Real Madrid: Vinicius Junior goal downs Reds in Champions League final as chaotic scenes at Stade de France mar game

Liverpool suffered Champions League heartbreak on a chaotic night in Paris as Vinicius Junior's second-half goal clinched the trophy for Real Madrid for the 14th time in their history.

Jurgen Klopp's side were hoping to avenge their 2018 Champions League final defeat to the Spanish giants in Kyiv but they could not find a leveller after going down 1-0 when Vinicius ghosted in at the far post to convert Federico Valverde's low cross (59).

The game's kick-off time had earlier been delayed by more than half an hour as organisational problems outside the Stade de France caused long delays and dangerous overcrowding for Liverpool supporters attempting to enter the ground.

Liverpool lost none of their focus despite the chaotic circumstances, creating a succession of chances and having 24 shots to Madrid's four, but they could not find a way past the outstanding Thibaut Courtois, who tipped a Sadio Mane effort onto the inside of the post in the first half and made a string of other excellent saves.

Liverpool were bidding to win the competition for the seventh time but the defeat ensures they miss out on a treble having won the Carabao Cup and FA Cups earlier this season, while Madrid, their run to the final characterised by a series of extraordinary comebacks, celebrate yet another European triumph.

https://www.skysports.com/football/liverpool-vs-r-madrid/report/463262

 

[ChTab]

Fun Fact for Liverpool Fans.

In last 38 years since Liverpool won thier 4th CL title they have only won the competition twice one time a fluke win vs AC Milan & the 2nd time a win vs Spurs.

Let that sink in for a while.

Most Liverpool fans & all the pundits were saying that Liverpool will win 3-1.

In your face Mo Salah revenge

 

[msb314]

Fun Fact for Liverpool Fans.

In last 38 years since Liverpool won thier 4th CL title they have only won the competition twice one time a fluke win vs AC Milan & the 2nd time a win vs Spurs.

Let that sink in for a while.

Most Liverpool fans & all the pundits were saying that Liverpool will win 3-1.

In your face Mo Salah revenge

Not a Liverpool fan by any means but most teams would kill to win the UCL twice in 38 years…

 

[MenInG]

European football governing body UEFA blamed "fake tickets which did not work in the turnstiles" for a delay of over half an hour to the start of Saturday's Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid in Paris.

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UEFA said French police had fired tear gas to disperse thousands of frustrated fans who were building up outside the Stade de France as a result of the fake tickets issue.

But English giants Liverpool said they were "hugely disappointed" that their supporters had been subjected to an "unacceptable" breakdown of the security perimeter at France's national stadium.

The final of Europe's most prestigious club competition was supposed to kick off at 9:00pm (1900 GMT) but was pushed back due to the queues of mainly Liverpool fans who could not get into the ground.

"In the lead-up to the game, the turnstiles at the Liverpool end became blocked by thousands of fans who had purchased fake tickets which did not work in the turnstiles," UEFA said in a statement.


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"This created a build-up of fans trying to get in. As a result, the kick-off was delayed by 35 minutes to allow as many fans as possible with genuine tickets to gain access.

"As numbers outside the stadium continued to build up after kick-off, the police dispersed them with tear gas and forced them away from the stadium."

UEFA said they were "sympathetic" to the fans affected and would review the situation together with local police and authorities, as well as the French Football Federation.

French police sources told AFP that supporters tried to force their way through the first ticket checkpoint outside the stadium situated in the northern Paris suburb of Saint-Denis.

Tear gas was fired by police after several dozen people attempted to climb over barriers, according to an AFP reporter on the scene, with about 20 people succeeding in clearing the fence and getting into the ground.

Thousands of supporters were still massed outside the stadium with half an hour to go to kick-off.

Liverpool, however, were adamant fans had been badly treated ahead of a match that Real won 1-0 thanks to Vinicius Junior's 59th-minute goal.

"We are hugely disappointed at the stadium entry issues and breakdown of the security perimeter that Liverpool fans faced this evening at Stade de France," the English club said in a statement.

"This is the greatest match in European football and supporters should not have to experience the scenes we have witnessed tonight.

"We have officially requested a formal investigation into the causes of these unacceptable issues."

Football Supporters Europe, a lobby group, said fans were not to blame for the "fiasco" at the Stade de France, while Kelly Cates, the daughter of Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish, described the pre-match scenes outside the ground as "absolutely shambolic".

There were still large sections of empty seats in the official Liverpool end of the 80,000-capacity stadium at the time the game was supposed to start.

Some 6,800 security forces were deployed for the event, with between 30,000 and 40,000 Liverpool fans without tickets for the final expected in Paris.

A fan zone with a capacity of over 40,000 was set up for them on an avenue in the east of the French capital.

Around 20,000 fans of each club were officially allocated tickets for the game.

© 2022 AFP

 

[James]

I have been a Sky Sports subscriber for years so perhaps I have been spoilt by the likes of Neville, Keane, and Richards doing the punditry. It’s even got to the point with them now (and “sometimes” Carragher) that I genuinely look forward to the pre and post match conversations and listening to their insights and opinions.

Conversely, I never got round to signing up for BT Sport and think it’s overpriced, but I watched the free coverage last night on YouTube and have got to say that the standard of the “expert” summarising was absolutely appalling.

Gerrard, Macca, and worst of all the interminable Michael Owen — what on earth were these clowns on about — atrociously biased in Liverpool’s favour and completely off the mark in almost all of their analysis throughout the broadcast.

 

[ARK Rafay]

Like I said earlier. People were fool to right off Real Madrid.

The better team won. It's as simple as that.

 

[MenInG]

The organisation of the Champions League final at the Stade de France in Paris was a "shambles", according to Liverpool defender Andy Robertson.

Uefa delayed kick-off by more than half an hour for "security reasons", adding the problem was thousands of fans trying to get in with fake tickets.

Robertson says he had given a ticket to a friend but he was denied entry for the game which Real Madrid won 1-0.

"One of my mates got told it was a fake which I assure you it wasn't," he said.

"It was a shambles really," the Scot told BBC Sport.

Pictures emerged of a huge amount of Liverpool fans in long queues outside the stadium.

The big screen in the ground said the game was delayed because of "the late arrival of fans" but some claimed they had been at the stadium hours before kick-off.

Police outside the ground fired tear gas as a small number of supporters tried to climb over security barriers.

Liverpool have called for an investigation into the "unacceptable issues" faced by fans - with some not making it into the ground until the second half.

Robertson added: "To be honest people were just making it up at times and panicking. Tear gas getting thrown at people was unacceptable.

"It was horrendous for our fans and all families that have been through it as well. It wasn't a nice experience, not a nice final to come to. The Champions League should be a celebration but it wasn't that.

"Obviously the final wasn't meant to be here and whether the preparations were not as good as maybe they should have been but I am sure in the coming days an inquest will go into that."

BBC

 

[MenInG]

Liverpool FC have called for an investigation following the violence used against its fans before the Champions League final on Saturday night.

Security processes at the Stade de France in Paris appeared to have been overwhelmed by the size of the crowd, leaving many fans waiting outside the ground for hours, with some not being allowed in until half-time.

The beginning of the match between Liverpool and Real Madrid was delayed for more than 30 minutes, with supporters being blamed for arriving late to the stadium.

Police officers with batons and riot shields ran from gate to gate to prevent groups of fans forcing their way into the stadium without showing tickets and officers used tear gas on fans repeatedly.

But Liverpool fans said that the tensions had been driven by young Parisians, who taunted police and caused the gates to be shut.

The Spanish side won the match 1-0, with Brazilian winger Jose Vinicius Junior scoring the only goal.

One fan, Carl Noades, 63, told the PA news agency: "There only seems to be one gate open, it's ridiculous, the game's kicked off and we're stuck outside.

Football fans near the Eiffel Tower in Paris ahead of Saturday's UEFA Champions League Final between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid at the Stade de France, in Paris France. Picture date: Friday May 27, 2022.

Champions League final: Tens of thousand of Liverpool fans gather in Paris ahead of this evening's game against Real Madrid

Liverpool fans got to France using various modes of transport including a speedboat and a coach
Desperate Liverpool fans charter speedboat and buy own coach to reach Champions League final in Paris

"It's a disgrace, the way they're treating us is shocking, there's no organisation."

Another fan said: "This will be pinned on us, but it's nothing to do with us.

"There are hundreds here causing trouble, they're not even for the game - it's chaos."

Liverpool FC said in a statement: "We are hugely disappointed at the stadium entry issues and breakdown of the security perimeter that Liverpool fans faced this evening at Stade de France.

"This is the greatest match in European football and supporters should not have to experience the scenes we have witnessed tonight.

"We have officially requested a formal investigation into the causes of these unacceptable issues."

Liverpool fans struggle to enter the stadium.

UEFA blamed the fans, saying: "In the lead-up to the game, the turnstiles at the Liverpool end became blocked by thousands of fans who had purchased fake tickets which did not work in the turnstiles.

"This created a build-up of fans trying to get in. As a result, the kick off was delayed by 35 minutes to allow as many fans as possible with genuine tickets to gain access.

"As numbers outside the stadium continued to build up after kick off, the police dispersed them with tear gas and forced them away from the stadium.

"UEFA is sympathetic to those affected by these events and will further review these matters urgently together with the French police and authorities, and with the French Football Federation."

Prefecture de Police, the Parisian police force, also blamed fans who had arrived without tickets, saying: "Exerting strong pressure to enter the enclosure, these supporters delayed access to spectators with tickets.

"Taking advantage of this action, a number of people managed to cross the gates protecting the stadium enclosure.

"The rapid intervention of the police allowed the return to calm and the evacuation of the disturbers outside the forecourt of the Stade de France.

"The dispersal of the spectators takes place without difficulty. No major incident was observed in the two fan zones."

A Merseyside Police spokesperson said on Twitter: "MERPOL was deployed to this evening's match.

"Can only describe it as the worst European match I've ever worked or experienced.

"I thought the behaviour of the fans at the turnstiles was exemplary in shocking circumstances.

"You were not late 100%."

Sky correspondent James Matthews was at the game and said: "It was Liverpool's biggest night of the season but, whatever happened on the pitch, it was a shambles off it.

"The kick off may have been delayed but, even as it approached half-time, several hundred Liverpool fans were still queuing to get in.

"Many of them showed us their tickets and told how they'd been waiting for more than two hours to gain entry. This, after a long and expensive journey to get here.

"Big football occasions attract large numbers of ticketless opportunists and there was clearly a police effort to weed them out.

"It meant that large groups of supporters were caught up in a robust policing operation that saw groups of officers in riot gear conducting chases around the stadium concourse and using irritant spray and tear gas.

"Liverpool fans were caught up in the chaos and had to endure the irritant - the choice was to run or lose a place in the queue.

"All this on European club football's biggest occasion - a night which was, for too many, the showpiece that showed football at its worst."

https://news.sky.com/story/uefa-and...nal-but-british-police-dispute-claim-12623336

 

[JaDed]

Good , showing EPL fan boys which league is the boss.

 

[MenInG]

Liverpool have called for an investigation into the "unacceptable issues" faced by fans which led to their Champions League final against Real Madrid being delayed.

Uefa delayed kick-off by more than 30 minutes, citing "security reasons".

The match at the Stade de France in Paris did not start until 20:36 BST, with Real beating Liverpool 1-0.

Police outside the ground fired tear gas as a small number of supporters tried to climb over security barriers.

Liverpool defender Andy Robertson said the organisation of the match was a "shambles".

Merseyside Police's matchday officers tweeted that it was "the worst European match I've ever worked or experienced".

They added: "I thought the behaviour of the fans at the turnstiles was exemplary in shocking circumstances. You were not late 100%."

Pictures had emerged in the build-up of huge crowds of fans queuing to get in.

Many claimed they had been at the stadium hours before kick-off but were stopped from getting into the ground.

"We are hugely disappointed at the stadium entry issues and breakdown of the security perimeter that Liverpool fans faced this evening at Stade de France," the Anfield club said in a statement.

"This is the greatest match in European football and supporters should not have to experience the scenes we have witnessed tonight.

"We have officially requested a formal investigation into the causes of these unacceptable issues."

European football's governing body Uefa said it was "sympathetic to those affected by these events and will further review these matters urgently together with the French police and authorities, and with the French Football Federation".

"In the lead-up to the game, the turnstiles at the Liverpool end became blocked by thousands of fans who had purchased fake tickets which did not work in the turnstiles," it explained.

"This created a build-up of fans trying to get in. As a result, the kick-off was delayed by 35 minutes to allow as many fans as possible with genuine tickets to gain access.

"As numbers outside the stadium continued to build up after kick-off, the police dispersed them with tear gas and forced them away from the stadium."

French police had urged fans not to force entry with tweets 20 minutes before the game was scheduled to begin.

As kick-off approached, large areas of empty seats could still be seen inside the ground.

Outside, some fans were seen climbing perimeter fences or attempting to run past security. Riot police were also in attendance.

Liverpool players emerged to warm up again at 20:06, with messages on the big screens inside the stadium stating the delay was because of the late arrival of fans.

French police said fans with fake tickets had tried to force access to the stadium but "the rapid intervention of the police allowed the return to calm".

They added they were able to disperse fans "without difficulty".

They also said there were no major incidents at fan zones in the city, although 500 people were moved on from a bar near the Liverpool fanzone at Cours de Vincennes.

BBC journalist Nick Parrott, who was outside the ground in a personal capacity, told BBC Radio 5 Live: "I have just been pepper sprayed for the first time in my life. I have been to the Champions League final before and I have never been pepper sprayed before.

"I was outside Gate Y which has been opening and closing repeatedly over the last hour and a half but nobody has been going through. The security staff on the other side advanced and sprayed pepper spray."

The opening ceremony started at just after 20:20 BST before the game finally got under way 16 minutes later.

Some 10 minutes after kick-off, Football Supporters Europe said "thousands are still trapped outside the stadium, remaining calm in the face of a completely unreasonable situation".

The body added: "Fans at the Champions League final bear no responsibility for tonight's fiasco."

BBC Sport's John Watson, at the ground, said he had "passed hundreds of Liverpool fans queuing at entry gates an hour before kick-off and not being permitted entry".

"I'm at a loss to understand the reasoning for the delay being the late arrival of fans," he added.

Defender Robertson says he had given a ticket to a friend but he was denied entry for the game.

"One of my mates got told it was a fake which I assure you it wasn't," he said.

"It was horrendous for our fans and all families that have been through it as well. It wasn't a nice experience, not a nice final to come to. The Champions League should be a celebration but it wasn't that."

Liverpool West Derby MP Ian Byrne tweeted to say he had "endured one of the worst experiences in my life", blaming Uefa for "horrendous security and organisation putting lives at risk".

"I pray no fans have been injured because of the disgraceful lack of organisation and expertise," he added.

Dominic King, from the Daily Mail, told BBC Radio 5 Live he had been speaking to supporters queueing to get into the stadium.

"It came from nowhere," he said. "There has been no violence or antagonism. They are just dismayed by how the authorities have treated them."

"We got told about 45 minutes before, that our end was filled while there were thousands outside," Liverpool fan Tyler, who spent £1,000 on his ticket, told BBC Radio 5 Live.

The final was originally to be played in St Petersburg, but the city was stripped of the game following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

BBC

 

[sweep_shot]

Congratulations, Real Madrid.

 

[MenInG]

A Liverpool player says a club-issued ticket to the Champions League final was dismissed as "fake" - as UEFA and French ministers blamed fans at the UK end for the delayed kick-off against Real Madrid.

 

[MenInG]

The Pakistani connection!

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"> A big night of <a href="https://twitter.com/ChampionsLeague?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ChampionsLeague</a> football awaits! <a href="https://twitter.com/adidasfootball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@adidasfootball</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/UCLfinal?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#UCLfinal</a> <a href="https://t.co/Twi9AL6zma">pic.twitter.com/Twi9AL6zma</a></p>— Real Madrid C.F. &#55356;&#56812;&#55356;&#56807;&#55356;&#56826;&#55356;&#56824; (@realmadriden) <a href="https://twitter.com/realmadriden/status/1530481504199053312?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 28, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[topspin]

Courtois’ interview was telling - summed up the delusional mindset of the PL fans.

He has been the best keeper in the world for the past 12 months but PL fans won’t shut up about Alisson and Ederson.

Chelsea sold him for less than £40m and bought Kepa for £70m.

The fact that PL fans think Madrid won’t have more than 70 points in the PL when Arsenal had 69 and Spurs had 71 sums up their overconfidence and delusion.

Madrid is brimming with world class players who elite mentality. They win the PL if not finish in the top 2.

What about Benzema? Were you pleased for him and has he done enough to win B
Ballon d'Or?

 

[Kianig89]

What a game Liverpool did everything right apart from scoring a goal, hard luck Madrid won it on reputation, 5 European cups for Modric, Benzema, Kroos and Carvajal amazing just amazing

 

[Mamoon]

What about Benzema? Were you pleased for him and has he done enough to win B
Ballon d'Or?

Ballon d’Or was settled months ago. Benzema is the undisputed winner. Salah fizzled out after AFCON and Mane was never in the running.

Great to see Benzema get the spotlight after Ronaldo’s departure. He has been nothing short of sensational over the past 2 years.

 

[Markhor]

Fun Fact for Liverpool Fans.

In last 38 years since Liverpool won thier 4th CL title they have only won the competition twice one time a fluke win vs AC Milan & the 2nd time a win vs Spurs.

Let that sink in for a while.

Most Liverpool fans & all the pundits were saying that Liverpool will win 3-1&#55358;&#56611;&#55358;&#56611;&#55358;&#56611;&#55358;&#56611;.

In your face Mo Salah revenge &#55358;&#56611;&#55358;&#56611;&#55358;&#56611;

Yes "only" 6 European titles altogether whereas some clubs can dream of winning one. How will we ever cope with this disappointment.

Although yes Salah should've kept his mouth shut about revenge.

 

[Mamoon]

Liverpool doing a trophy parade with FA and Carabao Cups won on penalties. )

 

[MenInG]

The culture secretary has called on UEFA to launch a formal investigation into violent scenes in Paris that delayed the Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid.

The size of the crowd outside the Stade de France on Saturday evening appeared to overwhelm security, with many supporters waiting outside for hours, while others were not allowed in until half-time.

Liverpool fans were subjected to violence, with tear gas and pepper spray being used repeatedly by police.

Fans search for 'hero' who pulled children from 'crush' - latest updates

Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries said: "The footage and accounts from Liverpool fans and the media on their entry to the Stade de France last night are deeply concerning.

"Thousands of ticket holders travelled to Paris in good time to support their team in the biggest match of their season.

"I urge UEFA to launch a formal investigation into what went wrong and why, in coordination with stadium staff, the French Police, Fédération Française de Football, Merseyside Police and Liverpool Football Club.

Champions League final: French police were heavy-handed with absolutely zero tolerance, says Sky Sports News chief reporter

"It is in the interests of everyone involved to understand what happened and to learn lessons from these events."

French police and UEFA, European football's governing body, have blamed Liverpool fans, but the club and Merseyside Police have said that is not true.

SKY

 

[Markhor]

I have been a Sky Sports subscriber for years so perhaps I have been spoilt by the likes of Neville, Keane, and Richards doing the punditry. It’s even got to the point with them now (and “sometimes” Carragher) that I genuinely look forward to the pre and post match conversations and listening to their insights and opinions.

Conversely, I never got round to signing up for BT Sport and think it’s overpriced, but I watched the free coverage last night on YouTube and have got to say that the standard of the “expert” summarising was absolutely appalling.

Gerrard, Macca, and worst of all the interminable Michael Owen — what on earth were these clowns on about — atrociously biased in Liverpool’s favour and completely off the mark in almost all of their analysis throughout the broadcast.

Football coverage on television generally is lowest common denominator stuff. Between the forced 'bants' for YouTube clicks, Neville and Carragher constantly getting on their soapbox, and recycling of tired cliches and platitudes - it's one of the many reasons why I don't follow football like I used to.

The pre and post match coverage last as long as the actual matches it seems.

 

[James]

Liverpool doing a trophy parade with FA and Carabao Cups won on penalties. )

Yes, feels a bit OTT that!

 

[James]

Football coverage on television generally is lowest common denominator stuff. Between the forced 'bants' for YouTube clicks, Neville and Carragher constantly getting on their soapbox, and recycling of tired cliches and platitudes - it's one of the many reasons why I don't follow football like I used to.

The pre and post match coverage last as long as the actual matches it seems.

I enjoy closely following Leeds United.

The “big” clubs, the constant obsessive coverage of them and how nobody else ever seems to win trophies (or rarely) is all becoming a bit tiresome however.

I know the European Super League was the wrong idea from the start, executed very poorly and had terrible optics, but IMO the current unspoken arrangement with the “top” clubs and their own cosy little universe that they already live in together surely cannot last forever.

 

[James]

<b>Champions League: Welsh Liverpool fans say they were 'treated like animals'</b>

Liverpool fans from Wales have claimed they were treated like "animals" at Saturday's Champions League final.

The Paris match - which Liverpool lost to Real Madrid - had its kick-off delayed for 30 minutes.

European football's governing body, Uefa, cited "security concerns" for the delay, and claimed thousands of fans tried to enter with fake tickets.

Merseyside Police - which had officers in Paris - said the vast majority of fans behaved in an exemplary manner.

Liverpool fans have reported highly distressing scenes as tear gas was fired at them by police, and children had to be pulled out of crowds to avoid being crushed.

Father and son Richard and Tomi Vaughan from Tywyn, Gwynedd, were at the match, with Richard claiming they were treated worse than animals.

"In light of what's happened at stadiums before from a safety point of view - and with what's happened to Liverpool supporters in the past - lessons seem to have not been learned from that," said Richard.

"I'm a farmer and I wouldn't treat my livestock the way we were treated, and the way I was manhandled by the police last night. It was an absolute disgrace we were so squashed up we just couldn't move."

Tomi said: "I was unfortunately at the very front of this queue when they brought out the tear gas. I couldn't breath at all.

"I was coughing, tears running down my face. I couldn't see. It was awful.

"That was when riot police came in and one officer hit me with their shield and bat and knocked me back to outside of the ground again. I was scared for my life"

Dylan Wyn Roberts, from Bow Street, Ceredigion, who was also at the match with his son Tomos, said: "It was the worst experience of my life at a football game."

Dylan said the organisation at the entry gates was so poor that a number of fans with valid tickets decided to leave and miss the game.

"The police appeared just before kick-off and that's when the heavy tactics of tear gas and pepper spray were let off," said Dylan.

"We eventually got in, but organisation was poor - the number of women and children I saw crying was just really disturbing."

Tomos called the experience "horrible".

He saw children being pulled out of the crowd because they were being crushed.

"There was tear gas everywhere, we all got separated in the queue and it was unnerving not knowing where your group was.

"There was no mobile signal. It was horrible," Tomos added.

"We heard they were blaming Liverpool fans for turning up late. That was nonsense because they were there hours before."

Liverpool FC has called for an investigation and Uefa said it was "sympathetic to those affected by the events" and will review matters further.

The French sports ministry said it had called a meeting with Uefa, the French Football Association, stadium officials and police on Monday to "draw lessons" from the event.

UK Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries urged Uefa to formally investigate the "deeply concerning" scenes and said it was in everyone's interest to "learn lessons".

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-61626277

 

[MenInG]

France's sports minister says Liverpool fans without valid tickets caused the initial crowd problems at Saturday's Champions League final in Paris.

Amelie Oudea-Castera blamed a "mass gathering" of supporters with "fake tickets" for the chaos at the stadium.

But she said local youths trying to force their way in made things worse.

Liverpool fans criticised the French police response, and UK Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries described the scenes as "deeply concerning".

French police have been criticised for firing pepper spray and tear gas at some Liverpool fans as they waited to get into the stadium on Saturday evening.

The latest comments come ahead of a meeting on Monday morning with the French sports ministry, Uefa, the French Football Association, stadium officials and police to "draw lessons" from the event.

"What happened, first of all, was this mass gathering of the British supporters of the Liverpool club, without tickets, or with fake tickets," Ms Oudea-Castera told French radio RTL.

But she said more people from the local area tried to force their way in through the doors of the Stade de France, where the match was held.

"A certain number of youths from the nearby area who were present tried to get in by mixing in with the crowd," the minister said.

She also expressed regret that families and children were impacted by the use of tear gas.

Europe's football governing body, Uefa, initially blamed the "late arrival" of fans for the problems, which led to the start of the match being delayed by more than half an hour.

But Merseyside police, who are responsible for policing in Liverpool and were present in Paris, said the vast majority of Liverpool fans arrived early at the turnstiles and behaved in an "exemplary manner".

Fans spoke of long queues building up hours before the match started.

Ms Oudea-Castera said Monday's meeting of officials was aimed at identifying what went wrong, to avoid a repeat of the scenes in the future. Paris will host the Olympic Games in 2024 and the Rugby World Cup in 2023.

BBC

 

[Waleed93]

We are the biggest club in football history, and we simply can't stop proving it.

Great to see the arrogant Liverpool fans going back to their caves.

They thought they were playing Spurs in a Cup Final.

It seems like Salah will have to wait for a bit longer for his "revenge".

For now, enjoy your FA Cup Parade, this is Real Madrid.

 

[PetroDollars]

the worse RM team in years toys with what is LPs best side ever considered by there fans )

Was great revenge for Salah )

 

[Markhor]

<b>Champions League: Welsh Liverpool fans say they were 'treated like animals'</b>

Liverpool fans from Wales have claimed they were treated like "animals" at Saturday's Champions League final.

The Paris match - which Liverpool lost to Real Madrid - had its kick-off delayed for 30 minutes.

European football's governing body, Uefa, cited "security concerns" for the delay, and claimed thousands of fans tried to enter with fake tickets.

Merseyside Police - which had officers in Paris - said the vast majority of fans behaved in an exemplary manner.

Liverpool fans have reported highly distressing scenes as tear gas was fired at them by police, and children had to be pulled out of crowds to avoid being crushed.

Father and son Richard and Tomi Vaughan from Tywyn, Gwynedd, were at the match, with Richard claiming they were treated worse than animals.

"In light of what's happened at stadiums before from a safety point of view - and with what's happened to Liverpool supporters in the past - lessons seem to have not been learned from that," said Richard.

"I'm a farmer and I wouldn't treat my livestock the way we were treated, and the way I was manhandled by the police last night. It was an absolute disgrace we were so squashed up we just couldn't move."

Tomi said: "I was unfortunately at the very front of this queue when they brought out the tear gas. I couldn't breath at all.

"I was coughing, tears running down my face. I couldn't see. It was awful.

"That was when riot police came in and one officer hit me with their shield and bat and knocked me back to outside of the ground again. I was scared for my life"

Dylan Wyn Roberts, from Bow Street, Ceredigion, who was also at the match with his son Tomos, said: "It was the worst experience of my life at a football game."

Dylan said the organisation at the entry gates was so poor that a number of fans with valid tickets decided to leave and miss the game.

"The police appeared just before kick-off and that's when the heavy tactics of tear gas and pepper spray were let off," said Dylan.

"We eventually got in, but organisation was poor - the number of women and children I saw crying was just really disturbing."

Tomos called the experience "horrible".

He saw children being pulled out of the crowd because they were being crushed.

"There was tear gas everywhere, we all got separated in the queue and it was unnerving not knowing where your group was.

"There was no mobile signal. It was horrible," Tomos added.

"We heard they were blaming Liverpool fans for turning up late. That was nonsense because they were there hours before."

Liverpool FC has called for an investigation and Uefa said it was "sympathetic to those affected by the events" and will review matters further.

The French sports ministry said it had called a meeting with Uefa, the French Football Association, stadium officials and police on Monday to "draw lessons" from the event.

UK Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries urged Uefa to formally investigate the "deeply concerning" scenes and said it was in everyone's interest to "learn lessons".

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-61626277

Reading some scary eyewitness accounts of the pre-kickoff issues. It's miraculous nobody was seriously hurt.

Very reminiscent of Hillsborough with fans caught in crushes with the access point to the stadium being a narrow throughfare, poor signage and lack of communication from officials. Unlike 1989 however, the official misinformation from UEFA and France's Sports Minister has been swiftly countered by UK and French journalists who experienced the troubles first hand.

There's been violence throughout the French football season so it seems police were more trained for crowd unrest than crowd control with women and children being teargassed. Local Parisian gangs were even reported to be marauding.

Thre must be a proper investigation. I'm not sure why post-Covid, there seems to be so many issues organising and planning football events. There was troubles at the Euro Final and during our domestic season too.

 

[DeadlyVenom]

Reading some scary eyewitness accounts of the pre-kickoff issues. It's miraculous nobody was seriously hurt.

Very reminiscent of Hillsborough with fans caught in crushes with the access point to the stadium being a narrow throughfare, poor signage and lack of communication from officials. Unlike 1989 however, the official misinformation from UEFA and France's Sports Minister has been swiftly countered by UK and French journalists who experienced the troubles first hand.

There's been violence throughout the French football season so it seems police were more trained for crowd unrest than crowd control with women and children being teargassed. Local Parisian gangs were even reported to be marauding.

Thre must be a proper investigation. I'm not sure why post-Covid, there seems to be so many issues organising and planning football events. There was troubles at the Euro Final and during our domestic season too.

I wonder what those two events and the CL final have in common.....

English football fans are the worst in the world. They go everywhere, cause trouble, get deservedly smashed to bits and then take sad photographs in newspapers.

 

[MenInG]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">BREAKING: UEFA announces it has commissioned an independent report into the events surrounding the UEFA Champions League final in Paris on Saturday 28 May.<a href="https://t.co/xvtiTfgQ76">pic.twitter.com/xvtiTfgQ76</a></p>— Sky Sports (@SkySports) <a href="https://twitter.com/SkySports/status/1531349524425449475?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 30, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[MenInG]

Uefa has commissioned an independent report into the scenes that delayed Saturday's Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid.

Kick-off was delayed by over half an hour with Liverpool ticket-holders seen waiting in huge queues, and French police later using tear gas on crowds.

On Monday, France hit out at what it called "industrial-scale" ticket fraud amid a row over the game's policing.

Uefa said a "comprehensive review" would examine a number of factors.

These include the decision-making, responsibility and behaviour of all parties involved in the final, it said.

 

[Markhor]

I wonder what those two events and the CL final have in common.....

English football fans are the worst in the world. They go everywhere, cause trouble, get deservedly smashed to bits and then take sad photographs in newspapers.

Where's your evidence of fan violence at the CL Final ? I'm not denying English fans have misbehaved in various events but the violence was largely from the police who teargassed women and children in this situation.

Even the journos were getting pepper sprayed. It's all on camera, so scapegoating supporters for the failures of authorities like they did at Hillsborough (in my own city) will not fly.

Thank god this time there were no fatalities.

No country's fans has a monopoly on troublemaking so it's foolish to single out English fans especially when Rangers fans were caught brawling with their Frankfurt counterparts before the Europa League final. The behaviour of a minority doesn't mean you treat the majority like animals.

 

[Markhor]

[MENTION=51465]DeadlyVenom[/MENTION] - I'm now also reading the Spanish Sports Minister was kept waiting outside for an hour, while even VIPs and corporates were caught in the chaos !

Something has gone badly wrong and needs investigating, especially when France are hosting the 2023 Rugby World Cup and 2024 Olympics.

 

[shaz619]

[MENTION=51465]DeadlyVenom[/MENTION] - I'm now also reading the Spanish Sports Minister was kept waiting outside for an hour, while even VIPs and corporates were caught in the chaos !

Something has gone badly wrong and needs investigating, especially when France are hosting the 2023 Rugby World Cup and 2024 Olympics.

The police over there actually do their jobs though lad lol

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-61592910.amp

 

[DeadlyVenom]

Where's your evidence of fan violence at the CL Final ? I'm not denying English fans have misbehaved in various events but the violence was largely from the police who teargassed women and children in this situation.

Even the journos were getting pepper sprayed. It's all on camera, so scapegoating supporters for the failures of authorities like they did at Hillsborough (in my own city) will not fly.

Thank god this time there were no fatalities.

No country's fans has a monopoly on troublemaking so it's foolish to single out English fans especially when Rangers fans were caught brawling with their Frankfurt counterparts before the Europa League final. The behaviour of a minority doesn't mean you treat the majority like animals.

[MENTION=51465]DeadlyVenom[/MENTION] - I'm now also reading the Spanish Sports Minister was kept waiting outside for an hour, while even VIPs and corporates were caught in the chaos !

Something has gone badly wrong and needs investigating, especially when France are hosting the 2023 Rugby World Cup and 2024 Olympics.

No evidence - but i'm basing it from the very strong statements from the French officials and the past history of loutish behaviour from English fans. Theres been many years of these guys going abroad, taking beatings and then pulling compo faces in the media, that makes me inclined to believe the French. Especially when they have been so vociferious and damning in what they have said so far, there has been no sugar coating, they have laid the blame solely on the English. The argument wasn't concocted retrospectively, they excplicitly mentioned the Liverpool fans on the day of the match.

Videos may exist of innocents getting caught and unfortunately this is usually the case when English fans think they can take on the police, who then proceed to also whoop the backsides of those that weren't involved.

I disagree when you say no country has a monopoly on unruly fans. Unfortunately this behaviour is synonymous with english football. You mention the sad events of hillsborough but please do also remember the equally sad events of Heysel.

Interesting you mention Rangers. While they generally have poorly behaved fans - the mayor of Seville was complimentary this time round and the fans behaved admirably despite the mismanagement in the stadium.

Scottish National Fans are also well received wherever they go and dont go around causing trouble. Perhaps thats because there is often little chance of Scotland winning so the fans just go and enjoy themselves

 

[Markhor]

No evidence - but i'm basing it from the very strong statements from the French officials and the past history of loutish behaviour from English fans. Theres been many years of these guys going abroad, taking beatings and then pulling compo faces in the media, that makes me inclined to believe the French. Especially when they have been so vociferious and damning in what they have said so far, there has been no sugar coating, they have laid the blame solely on the English. The argument wasn't concocted retrospectively, they excplicitly mentioned the Liverpool fans on the day of the match.

Videos may exist of innocents getting caught and unfortunately this is usually the case when English fans think they can take on the police, who then proceed to also whoop the backsides of those that weren't involved.

I disagree when you say no country has a monopoly on unruly fans. Unfortunately this behaviour is synonymous with english football. You mention the sad events of hillsborough but please do also remember the equally sad events of Heysel.

Interesting you mention Rangers. While they generally have poorly behaved fans - the mayor of Seville was complimentary this time round and the fans behaved admirably despite the mismanagement in the stadium.

Scottish National Fans are also well received wherever they go and dont go around causing trouble. Perhaps thats because there is often little chance of Scotland winning so the fans just go and enjoy themselves

Perhaps I've seen too many hooligan documentaries but the Turkish and Balkan leagues are far more volatile. Derby matches between the big clubs are policed like a warzone. Again I'm not saying there isn't disorder in the UK, but not to that extent.

So there's no evidence of violence at the CL Final except very strong statements from police. Need I remind you that South Yorkshire Police also made very strong statements about drunk fans surging the gates at Hillsborough in 1989, stealing from the dead and urinating on police ?

It turned out the inept chief superintendent opened the gate himself, and the other claims were complete fabrications as multiple inquiries and the longest ever British judicial inquest concluded.

Sorry but experience has taught me not to take official narratives at face value.

 

[Technics 1210]

I cannot help but laugh at Real Madrid supporters using 'we' to describe themselves when they don't live in Madrid let alone Spain.

Glory supporters.

And no, I do not support Liverpool.

 

[Waleed93]

I cannot help but laugh at Real Madrid supporters using 'we' to describe themselves when they don't live in Madrid let alone Spain.

Glory supporters.

And no, I do not support Liverpool.

You don't need to live in a certain city to support it's club, or do you ?

Do you think every PSG fan lives in Paris ? Does every Liverpool fan live in Liverpool ?

Idiotic post. Real Madrid is the club I started supporting back in the early 1990s when we were struggling to win a UCL after almost 30 years. Most fans supported the team in it's lowest phases, and deserve to attach themselves with the club.

It's another issue if we beat one of your sides during this historic campaign, or maybe Madrid have become such a huge club that you think that every fan of theirs must be a glory hunter.

 

[Firebat]

Champions League final: Liverpool CEO Billy Hogan 'incredibly surprised' by French sports minister claiming fans were 'let out in wild'

Liverpool chief executive Billy Hogan is "incredibly surprised" by "deeply hurtful" comments made earlier on Monday by the French sports minister Amelie Oudea-Castera regarding the chaos before the Champions League final in Paris.

Oudea-Castera blamed Liverpool fans being "let out in the wild", but Hogan has responded by saying those comments were "deeply hurtful" to the club.

Liverpool supporters were unable to access the Stade de France smoothly ahead of the clash with Real Madrid, which had to be delayed for more than 30 minutes as a result.

Hogan's comments came in a Q&A discussing the club's response to the issues which affected Liverpool's travelling fans in the French capital.

He addressed Oudea-Castera, saying: "I would just say we are incredibly surprised that someone in that position would make comments in the first place at this point, when we haven't had adequate time to understand what happened.

"There hasn't been an independent investigation to establish all the facts. And as we said on Saturday, there needs to be that independent, transparent investigation into what happened at the match. That's the start of the process.

"So to be making comments at this stage, prior to any investigation being launched, is completely inappropriate. We should know all the facts to make sure that the scenes that we've all seen - absolutely disgraceful - from Saturday don't ever happen again.

"Making comments as deeply unhelpful as that, we just feel that everyone should be focused on getting the investigation right and less about making inflammatory comments that attempt to deflect responsibility for what happened on Saturday night.

"What I would say is that our fans were provided the UEFA information to travel to the stadium safely, which they did; they approached the stadium as directed and in good time. However, it was on arrival at the stadium when they experienced the issues.

"In regard to the comments, we were in complete disbelief when we were made aware of them earlier today. I think it's important that folks know that our chairman, Tom Werner, sent a letter to the French minister to articulate our views and is calling for an apology to our fans for those comments."

The club has asked supporters to fill out a feedback form to support the investigation into the operational management of the final.

The French Sports Minister has since commissioned a report on the troubles that marred the weekend's showpiece event. Oudea-Castera has asked Michael Cadot, the inter-ministerial delegate for large sports events, to produce the report within 10 days.

UEFA has also commissioned an independent report into the events to be chaired by Portuguese MP Dr Tiago Brandao Rodrigues.

https://www.skysports.com/football/...ench-sports-ministers-deeply-hurtful-comments

 

[James]

The aftermath of this incident has so far felt like the most tragic of histories repeating itself.

The narrative and the tone being pushed by the French government have seemingly had uncanny echoes of the infamous Sun newspaper front page about Hillsborough in the 1980s.

There are reports that in Paris on Saturday night, English women and their children, as well as some disabled children, were being pepper sprayed and tear gassed. Apparently there are photos and videos of this happening. It’s deeply upsetting and disturbing to even think about.

Whilst it is indisputably true that “some” English football fans and elements of the English football culture have a long history of violence, alcohol drinking and hooliganism, football is the national sport in England and has many millions of followers and supporters, of all ages and from all backgrounds. Therefore it is not right to generalise and to conflate all English football fans together.

There needs to be an enquiry into the (dis)organisation that sat behind this cup final, and also into the behaviour of the French police who may have abused their power.

 

[MenInG]

Liverpool chief executive Billy Hogan has labelled comments by France's interior minister about the scenes at the Champions League final as "disgraceful".

Gerald Darmanin said only English fans caused problems at the final between Liverpool and Real Madrid in Paris.

"My response to the French minister's comments again, as I said earlier in the week, is just one of disbelief frankly," added Hogan.

Police used tear gas on some fans.

Hogan said 6,500 fans had responded to a request by the club, asking supporters who attended the final, to complete a feedback form in order to support any investigation into the operational management of the event.

"With regard to the fact that this is only Liverpool fans, I spoke to my counterpart at Real Madrid yesterday, who made it clear that their fans also had issues," he added in a question and answer session on Liverpool's website.

"The pain, the grief, the harm, the hurt that they [fans] suffered on Saturday, and now to be told by a French minister that only Liverpool fans have been a problem, it's just disgraceful."

Europe's football governing body Uefa has commissioned an independent report into what happened at the final.

"We've written to Uefa again today and we've raised specific questions - 13 specific questions - that we'd like them to clarify around the details of this investigation," said Hogan.

"We just feel it's incredibly important that we get this investigation going, frankly that we get it launched immediately."

Liverpool fans have described heavy-handed policing, organisational chaos and overcrowding at the showpiece game, which was moved to Paris from St Petersburg following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

They have strongly contested the version of events from French authorities, who have blamed ticket fraud and accused Liverpool football club of failing to control their fans.

The match, which was eventually won 1-0 by Real Madrid, was delayed when long queues of Liverpool fans built up outside the stadium in Paris.

It has also emerged that supporters were targeted by local gangs.

BBC

 

[SpiritOf1903]

The aftermath of this incident has so far felt like the most tragic of histories repeating itself.

The narrative and the tone being pushed by the French government have seemingly had uncanny echoes of the infamous Sun newspaper front page about Hillsborough in the 1980s.

There are reports that in Paris on Saturday night, English women and their children, as well as some disabled children, were being pepper sprayed and tear gassed. Apparently there are photos and videos of this happening. It’s deeply upsetting and disturbing to even think about.

Whilst it is indisputably true that “some” English football fans and elements of the English football culture have a long history of violence, alcohol drinking and hooliganism, football is the national sport in England and has many millions of followers and supporters, of all ages and from all backgrounds. Therefore it is not right to generalise and to conflate all English football fans together.

There needs to be an enquiry into the (dis)organisation that sat behind this cup final, and also into the behaviour of the French police who may have abused their power.

Europe had a mistrust of the English anyway and Brexit has made it worse. And all this on the anniversary of Heysel

 

[transparent opacity]

Real Madrid ask for answers into 'unfortunate events' at Champions League final

Real Madrid have asked for answers into the "series of unfortunate events" at the Champions League final against Liverpool in Paris on 28 May.

They also want to know why the Stade de France was chosen for the game and who is "responsible for leaving the fans abandoned and defenceless".

"Football has transmitted an image to the world which is far away from the values and goals which it should pursue," said a Real Madrid statement.

The Spanish side won the final 1-0.

However, the match was delayed by more than half an hour and Liverpool fans have described heavy-handed policing, organisational chaos and overcrowding at the showpiece game, which was moved to the Stade de France from St Petersburg following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Liverpool chief executive Billy Hogan called the comments by France's interior minister Gerald Darmanin blaming English fans as "disgraceful" and that, having spoken to his Real Madrid counterpart, the Spanish club's supporters also had issues.

In their statement, Real Madrid cited "unfortunate events" which took place "in the surroundings of and at access points to the Stade de France, and even inside the stadium itself" and that their fans "were victim to said events".

They added: "We would like to know the reasons which led to this venue being chosen to host the final and the criteria used, taking into account the experiences of the day.

"Furthermore, we call for answers and explanations in order to determine those responsible for leaving the fans abandoned and defenceless. Fans who in general terms showed exemplary conduct at all times."

European football's governing body, Uefa, has commissioned an independent report into what happened at the final.

French authorities have blamed ticket fraud and accused Liverpool football club of failing to control their fans, although it has also emerged that supporters were targeted by local gangs.

"We believe something which should have been a wonderful festival of football for all fans who attended the game, quickly turned into a series of unfortunate events which have caused a sense of outrage around the world," said Real Madrid.

"As was evident in the revealing images published by the media, several fans were attacked, harassed, assaulted and robbed in violent fashion.

"These occurrences continued as they moved in their cars or busses, causing concern for their physical wellbeing. Certain fans even had to spend the night in hospital as a result of injuries."

The club added: "Our fans and supporters deserve a response and those responsible to be held accountable in order for events like these to be eradicated from football and sport in general."

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/61681762

 

[James]

<b>Champions League final: Uefa apologises to Liverpool and Real Madrid fans</b>

Uefa has apologised to Liverpool and Real Madrid fans caught up in events around the Champions League final and said it must not happen again.

Liverpool fans described heavy-handed policing, organisational chaos and overcrowding at last Saturday's showpiece game.

Real Madrid have asked for answers on the "series of unfortunate events".

"No football fan should be put in that situation, and it must not happen again," said a Uefa statement.

"Uefa wishes to sincerely apologise to all spectators who had to experience or witness frightening and distressing events in the build-up to the Uefa Champions League final at the Stade de France on 28 May 2022 in Paris, on a night which should have been a celebration of European club football."

French president Emmanuel Macron said ticket holders who were blocked from entering the stadium by security staff must be reimbursed "as fast as possible".

Macron said: "I have a thought for the families who have been pushed around, who have not been able to access the seats they had paid for.

"I have asked the government to clarify what happened, to determine the responsibilities and to explain them in detail to our compatriots, the British and the Spanish."

European football's governing body had previously announced that an independent review of what happened in the build-up to the final, and what lessons should be learned, would be led by Dr Tiago Brandao Rodrigues from Portugal.

French authorities and Uefa had blamed late arrivals and fake tickets for chaotic scenes outside the Stade de France, which caused the match to be delayed by more than half an hour.

Police used tear gas and pepper spray on some fans. It has also emerged that supporters were targeted by local gangs.

France's interior minister, Gerald Darmanin, said only English fans had caused problems at the final.

"The review will seek to establish a full picture and timeline of what occurred during the day, both within the stadium and the surrounding areas, including examining spectator flows to the stadium via the various access points," added Uefa's statement.

Liverpool legend Sir Kenny Dalglish said the apology was "a start" but added: "There is still a long way to go.

"This apology doesn't cover the false message about the late kick off, events at the fan park, or what happened in the aftermath."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/61686639

 

[MenInG]

An MP who saw "horrific" scenes at last weekend's Champions League final wants "a retraction of the smears" against Liverpool fans.

Europe's football governing body Uefa and French authorities initially blamed late arrivals and fake tickets for chaos at the game in Paris.

Uefa has apologised but Ian Byrne, who was at the match, wants a full retraction.

The Liverpool West Derby MP is planning a parliamentary motion about the issue.

Mr Byrne, who was also at the 1989 Hillsborough disaster that led to the deaths of 97 Liverpool fans after a stadium crush, told BBC Radio 4 Today that there was "a shambolic breakdown of stadium management" and "extremely hostile" policing in Paris.

"It was the worst event I've ever seen around a football match since 1989 at Hillsborough and it could have been as serious as Hillsborough with the lives lost," he said.

"It was only the patience of the Liverpool supporters that prevented that from happening because we got absolutely nothing from the authorities."

Following a week of widespread criticism, Uefa apologised on Friday to Liverpool and Real Madrid fans after sections of supporters, including children and elderly people, were targeted with tear gas and pepper spray by French police outside the stadium.

It has also emerged that fans, including Liverpool City Region mayor Steve Rotheram, were robbed and assaulted.

Mr Byrne said Uefa's apology was "a welcome acknowledgement of the horrors that were suffered by both sets of supporters".

He added: "But we need to continue to demand a full public apology and retraction of the smears that were given about the Liverpool fans regarding the delayed kick-off and everything else that's happened".

The chaos led to the match being delayed by 36 minutes, with Uefa initially blaming late arrivals even though footage showed thousands of fans had started queuing at least two hours before kick-off.

The claim was condemned by Merseyside Police officers working at the match as well as journalists reporting on the final who said "fans did not arrive late".

France's interior minister Gerald Darmanin later claimed there had been "industrial-scale" ticket fraud and that more than 30,000 Liverpool fans had fake tickets or no tickets outside the stadium.

However this was disputed by several supporters and Liverpool defender Andy Robertson who said a friend to whom he had given a ticket was denied entry.

Mr Darmanin's claim that only English fans had caused problems at the final also prompted widespread criticism including from Liverpool chief executive Billy Hogan who described it as "disgraceful".

French president Emmanuel Macron later said he had asked his government "to clarify what happened, to determine the responsibilities and to explain them in detail to our compatriots, the British and the Spanish."

He said ticket-holders who were blocked from entering the stadium should be reimbursed "as fast as possible".

Real Madrid, whose fans were also caught up in the turmoil ahead of the club's 1-0 win, asked for answers on who was "responsible for leaving the fans abandoned and defenceless".

Uefa has previously announced that an independent review of what happened at the final will be led by former Portugese sports minister Dr Tiago Brandão Rodrigues.

Mr Byrne said he was concerned about anyone being appointed by Uefa without "due process" and that he hoped people with "huge experience" from the Hillsborough inquests would be approached to assist.

He added that he planned to submit an early day motion in parliament on Monday to "crank up pressure" on the French government.

BBC

 

[MenInG]

Liverpool's mayor has said some French police officers were seeking confrontation at last month's Champions League final in Paris.

Steve Rotheram said police were quick to threaten fans with their batons.

The head of policing at the final earlier apologised for using tear gas on Liverpool fans travelling to the Stade de France but said he had no alternative.

The fiasco has prompted uproar in France as well as the UK and Spain.

Liverpool fans, including families with children, were tear-gassed and pepper-sprayed outside the stadium by police ahead of the final between Liverpool and Real Madrid on 28 May.

Then as they left the area, some fans were attacked by 300 to 400 local youths.

The French Senate is now investigating the incident.

Speaking to the Senate on Thursday, Mr Rotheram - who was at the final - said "the day gradually transformed from a dream into a nightmare".

"I saw police who were, in a way, looking to find a problem," he said.

He added that he had been robbed of his possessions at the event.

French authorities blamed late arrivals and fake tickets for overcrowding and chaotic scenes before the match.

Speaking earlier at the Senate, head of policing at the final Didier Lallement defended the tactics he used, insisting his "red line" was to save lives.

Using tear gas outside the stadium was the only means they had to get the crowd to move back without charging at them, which would have been "devastating", he explained. However, if his force had not dispersed the crowd, people could have died in a crush.

"I am fully aware that people acting in good faith, even families, were tear-gassed," he added. "For this I am very sorry. But there was no other way."

He did however admit that the security operation was "obviously a failure," saying "people were pushed around or attacked even though we owed them security."

He said his force was not prepared for the scale of the problem that thousands of fake tickets caused.

In another development during the Senate's investigation, it emerged that all the CCTV from outside the stadium on the day of the final has been deleted.

Erwan Le Prévost, director of international relations at the French Football Federation (FFF) told the Senate that CCTV footage of the stadium is automatically deleted after seven days. As the footage had not been requested before the seven days were up, it was deleted. He added that the images were "extremely violent".

Interior minister Gérald Darmanin has come under fire for his own response, blaming the trouble outside the stadium on "massive, industrial-scale" ticket fraud which caused Liverpool fans to turn up en masse.

Mr Lallement said the scale of fake tickets had not been considered ahead of the match. Asked why he had put the number of fake tickets at 30-40,000, the police chief admitted he may have been wrong but that was the number he had estimated at the time.

Liverpool fans have complained of fearing for their safety in the crush, despite arriving hours earlier. But they have also told of local gangs from the Saint-Denis area descending on crowds after the match, stealing phones and watches and threatening them with knives.

Mr Lallement pledged to do everything he could to find those responsible for the post-match violence and to bring them to justice. He encouraged British and Spanish citizens to file complaints to help find those responsible.

Uefa eventually apologised to fans of both clubs last week for the "frightening and distressing events" they had witnessed. "No football fan should be put in that situation, and it must not happen again," the European football governing body said in a statement.

BBC

 

[Markhor]

The 40K fake ticket number initially given by the French Interior Minister turns out to be less than 2K after investigations !

And even that figure may be inflated due to faulty scanners. Thankfully it hasn't taken 30 years, multiple inquiries, or the longest inquest in legal history to get to the truth this time.

Macron and Uefa have apologised. Hopefully French authorities will learn from this event with massive sporting events coming up over the next few years.

 

[MenInG]

BREAKING NEWS: Liverpool fans were unfairly blamed for the chaos that surrounded last season's Champions League final in Paris to divert attention from the failure of the organisers, according to a French Senate report.

 

[MenInG]

BREAKING NEWS: Liverpool fans were unfairly blamed for the chaos that surrounded last season's Champions League final in Paris to divert attention from the failure of the organisers, according to a French Senate report.

A French inquiry into the security fiasco at the Uefa Champions League final in May has found it was caused by a litany of administrative errors and failings rather than Liverpool fans.

The French government initially blamed supporters and fake tickets for the crowd chaos that led to fans being tear-gassed and robbed in Paris.

But a Senate report has found authorities blamed them unfairly.

Dysfunctional mistakes were made at every level, it said.

In their report, entitled Champions League Final: An Unavoidable Fiasco, two Senate committees investigated what went wrong on the night of the Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid in Paris on 28 May, taking evidence from Liverpool fan and club representatives as well as French officials.

Liverpool fans have told the BBC that the problems were caused by digital tickets not working properly on the night, leading to problems at the turnstiles at the Stade de France. A rail strike made things worse, leading to bottlenecks as supporters arrived for the match.

As well as being tear-gassed outside the ground, fans were robbed and assaulted by local troublemakers. It then emerged that CCTV footage had been wiped a week later because no request had been made to save it.

Laurent Lafon, one of the inquiry's two chairmen, spoke of a dysfunctional chain of events and failings in preparation: "Everyone went their own way without there being any real co-ordination."

Paris police, Uefa and the French government are all taken to task by the inquiry: Uefa for failing to plan for potential ticketing fraud and the government for shifting the blame on to supporters.

Co-chairman Jean-Noël Buffet identified the police's decision to use its anti-terror policy of pre-screening fans outside a rail station as part of the problem: "It just required 10,000 to 15,000 people to make this pre-filtering system untenable."

When the Paris prefect decided to abandon the screening because of the risk of a crush, the inquiry said the move had "created a space in front of the stadium for hooligans, who were then able to surge into it and attack supporters".

In evidence to the Senate committee last month, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin admitted things could have been better organised and apologised for the "disproportionate" use of tear gas. But he maintained Liverpool fans were largely to blame.

He had earlier complained that 30,000-40,000 Liverpool fans had arrived at the stadium either with no tickets at all or with forgeries. Uefa made clear there had actually been 2,700 fake tickets on the night.

The inquiry report reserved strong condemnation for Mr Darmanin himself: "It is unfair to have sought to blame supporters of the Liverpool team for the disturbances, as the interior minister has done, to deflect attention from the state's inability to properly manage the crowd and suppress the action of several hundred violent and organised delinquents."

It also found that the use of tear gas on fans had been "particularly aggressive". Liverpool fans told the inquiry that security methods used by Paris authorities were reminiscent of those deployed against hooligans in the 1980s.

The inquiry accepted that local authorities had little time to prepare for the May final, after it was moved from St Petersburg in mid-March because of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But it criticised Uefa for failing to legislate for fake paper tickets.

The shocking scenes outside the stadium came as an embarrassment to the government ahead of June parliamentary elections and as France plans for the 2023 Rugby World Cup and 2024 Paris Olympics.

BBC

 

[MenInG]

More than 1,700 Liverpool fans who suffered injury and trauma in the near-disaster at the Champions League final in Paris have registered for potential claims to sue Uefa.

 

[MenInG]

The organisation of May's Champions League final by European football's ruling body Uefa was "an abject failure", a panel of experts has said.

Fans were robbed and tear-gassed outside Liverpool and Real Madrid's game at Paris's Stade de France and kick-off was delayed by 36 minutes.

Organisers initially blamed fake tickets and supporters, but their claims drew widespread criticism.

Uefa said it would not comment until its own inquiry concludes in November.

Experts told BBC Panorama that fans' calm response was the main reason why overcrowding outside the stadium had not resulted in fatalities.

More than 480 testimonies by supporters and journalists at the 28 May final were examined by an independent panel, which included Prof Phil Scraton, who previously led a report into the 1989 Hillsborough stadium disaster.

The panel said fans were "held for several hours in a bottleneck" near the stadium, before finding themselves "again in static queues at malfunctioning turnstiles".

"On leaving the stadium, they were attacked at knife-point by gangs who stole their possessions," they added.

Their report found there had been:

The panel added that there had been an "abject failure by Uefa in meeting its responsibilities".

The Paris police did not respond to a request for comment from BBC Panorama, but have previously said they regret using tear gas against vulnerable people or those who did not cause trouble.

They have also said they regret the failures outside the stadium after the match.

Uefa issued an apology to both Liverpool and Real Madrid fans in June and has commissioned its own independent review into the event.

'Couldn't breathe'
The report said that before the game, about 15,000 Liverpool supporters were caught in a bottleneck near an underpass, after a decision to take down signage meant fans were only directed down one route to the stadium.

The panel found that as the build-up outside the Stade de France became increasingly dangerous, a ticket checkpoint was removed, releasing fans on to the concourse, but event organisers had shut some stadium gates to control the situation, which had been exacerbated by hundreds of local people trying to enter without tickets.

French authorities used tear gas, with children, elderly and disabled people caught up in the chaos, and riot police were deployed, despite Merseyside Police's pre-match intelligence report stating that Liverpool fans were well-behaved in Europe and did not appreciate the use of heavy-handed policing.

BBC Panorama analysed more than 300 videos recorded by fans, which showed thousands of supporters in tightly-packed crowds outside the stadium encouraging each other to stay calm and to back up.

Maxwell Pearce, aged 11, said he thought he was "going to die" after being tear-gassed and described how others encouraged him to get on the ground and hold his scarf over his face so he could breathe.

Grace Merritt, aged 19, said she felt like she "couldn't breathe because my ribs were in so much pain and I was thinking: 'Oh my god, anything could crack here, anything could be broken'."

The fan, who was at the game with her younger brother, received hospital treatment when she returned to Liverpool.

Dan Austin, who was caught in the underpass bottleneck, said awareness of the 1989 Hillsborough disaster, where a stadium crush led to the deaths of 97 Liverpool fans, "meant that everybody knew what to do".

He added that Liverpool supporters had "been through that before and… everybody, even people like me who were not alive at the time when it happened, has that kind of collective and local memory of what happened instilled in you from growing up".

In July, a French inquiry found the chaos was caused by administrative errors and that authorities had blamed Liverpool fans unfairly.

Prof Scraton said there had been serious failings by the event's organisers Uefa, adding that the organisation had the "overarching responsibility to get it right [and to] care for those people who are putting their hands in their pockets and coming into those matches".

 

[SpiritOf1903]

BBC 1 Panorama tonight

 

[daytrader]

Champions League final: Uefa 'responsible' for chaos before Liverpool v Real Madrid in Paris

Uefa bears "primary responsibility" for the chaotic scenes that "almost led to disaster" before last year's Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid, says an independent report.

Fans were penned in and teargassed outside Paris's Stade de France as kick-off was delayed by 36 minutes.

"It is remarkable no one lost their life," said the report, which Uefa commissioned after the 28 May final.

Uefa and French authorities initially blamed ticketless fans for the events.

The report says there is "no evidence" to support the "reprehensible" claims.

"The panel has concluded that Uefa, as event owner, bears primary responsibility for failures which almost led to disaster," said the report.

"All the stakeholders interviewed by the panel have agreed that this situation was a near-miss: a term used when an event almost turns into a mass fatality catastrophe."

While it said there was "contributory fault" from other bodies - particularly French police and the French Football Federation - the findings said European governing body Uefa was "at the wheel".

"Uefa should have retained a monitoring and oversight role [of security], to ensure it all worked. It self-evidently did not," the report added.

...
https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/64631335

 

[sweep_shot]

Champions League final: Uefa 'responsible' for chaos before Liverpool v Real Madrid in Paris

Uefa bears "primary responsibility" for the chaotic scenes that "almost led to disaster" before last year's Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid, says an independent report.

Fans were penned in and teargassed outside Paris's Stade de France as kick-off was delayed by 36 minutes.

"It is remarkable no one lost their life," said the report, which Uefa commissioned after the 28 May final.

Uefa and French authorities initially blamed ticketless fans for the events.

The report says there is "no evidence" to support the "reprehensible" claims.

"The panel has concluded that Uefa, as event owner, bears primary responsibility for failures which almost led to disaster," said the report.

"All the stakeholders interviewed by the panel have agreed that this situation was a near-miss: a term used when an event almost turns into a mass fatality catastrophe."

While it said there was "contributory fault" from other bodies - particularly French police and the French Football Federation - the findings said European governing body Uefa was "at the wheel".

"Uefa should have retained a monitoring and oversight role [of security], to ensure it all worked. It self-evidently did not," the report added.

...
https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/64631335

Something like this should never happen at a football game. Disgraceful.

 

[MenInG]

Uefa is to refund Liverpool fans who had tickets for the 2022 Champions League final in Paris.

It follows a recent independent report that found Uefa bears "primary responsibility" for the chaotic scenes before the game against Real Madrid.

Fans were penned in and sprayed with tear gas outside Paris' Stade de France as kick-off was delayed by 36 minutes.

Uefa said the refund scheme "covers all of the Liverpool FC ticket allocation for the final, i.e. 19,618 tickets".

"We have taken into account a huge number of views expressed both publicly and privately and we believe we have devised a scheme that is comprehensive and fair," said Uefa general secretary Theodore Theodoridis.

"We value the input from the Liverpool FC supporter organisations Spirit of Shankly and Liverpool Disabled Supporters Association as well as the open and transparent dialogue throughout this period.

"We recognise the negative experiences of those supporters on the day and with this scheme we will refund fans who had bought tickets and who were the most affected by the difficulties in accessing the stadium."

Liverpool were also part of the process of securing refunds for their fans and, as supporters bought tickets from them directly rather than Uefa, the club will administer the process.

Uefa and French authorities initially blamed ticketless fans for the events outside the stadium.

ADVERTISEMENT

The report, which Uefa commissioned after the 28 May final, said there was "no evidence" to support the "reprehensible" claims.

It added that "it is remarkable no one lost their life" and the collective action of Liverpool supporters was "probably instrumental" in preventing "more serious injuries and deaths" outside the stadium.

The report made 21 recommendations in an attempt to ensure "everything possible is done" to prevent any similar incident happening again at a major sporting event.

Spirit of Shankly and the Liverpool Disabled Supporters' Association said they "welcomed" the "unprecedented" refund from Uefa.

"With a promise to reimburse supporters, Uefa have gone some way to acknowledging their part in the fiasco," said a statement.

"But it does not excuse Uefa, exempt them from criticism or lessen the need for them to implement all of the recommendations made by the independent inquiry.

"We will work alongside Liverpool and publish details once we know how and when refunds will be processed."

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, whose side lost 1-0 to Real Madrid in the final, said it was "super important" that the club's fans had been exonerated for the situation which occurred before the game.

A law firm representing Liverpool fans in a claim against Uefa relating to events in Paris has said it "will be pushing ahead with our legal claim to seek appropriate compensation for our clients", while another said "our legal case is still progressing".

BBC

 

[MenInG]

Real Madrid say Uefa's proposal to reimburse some fans who attended last year's Champions League final is "insufficient" and have demanded all supporters should be compensated.

An independent report found Uefa bears "primary responsibility" for chaotic scenes that "almost led to disaster" outside Paris' Stade de France.

Real Madrid say they will not work with with Uefa's "limited" repayment scheme.

The club want Uefa to "rectify and assume full responsibility".

On Tuesday, the European governing body announced it would refund fans who had tickets for the final, which was played between Real Madrid and Liverpool on 28 May, in specific areas of the stadium.

Uefa said the refund scheme "covers all of the Liverpool FC ticket allocation for the final, ie 19,618 tickets".

Fans were penned in and teargassed outside as kick-off was delayed by 36 minutes.

The report, commissioned by Uefa and released last month, said it was "remarkable no one lost their life".

In a response released on Wednesday, Real Madrid said: "The fact is that all the fans experienced an unacceptable delay in the start of the match.

"In addition, there was unacceptable insecurity both in accessing and leaving the stadium, as well as additional harm such as theft, assaults and threats."

BBC Sport has contacted Uefa for further comment.

Uefa plans to give refunds to those fans who:

had tickets for gates A, B, C, X, Y and Z at the Stade de France - the area where many Liverpool supporters were bottlenecked and faced overcrowding issues
who did not enter the stadium before the match was supposed to kick-off (21:00 local time), according to the stadium's access control data
who were not able to enter the stadium at all
who purchased accessibility tickets
Real Madrid said it had discussed the refund scheme with Uefa and "trusted at all times" the compensation for all fans would be reflective of the conclusions made by the independent report.

"Unfortunately we consider the Uefa proposal insufficient," they said.

"The content of the report, which was requested by Uefa itself, highlights all the fans who attended the final were victims of Uefa's poor organisation and saw their personal safety compromised.

"Whether being able to access the stadium or not, or having done so at the scheduled time, which in any case was due to the exceptional behaviour of the fans of the two clubs, the reality is that all the fans suffered.

"For this reason, Real Madrid has decided not to cooperate with the limited compensation scheme promoted by Uefa, which we ask to rectify and assume full responsibility."

BBC

 

[MenInG]

Nearly 900 Liverpool fans caught up in the chaotic scenes at last year's Champions League final are to sue Uefa, say lawyers.

A recent independent report found Uefa bore "primary responsibility" for what almost led to a "mass fatality catastrophe" in Paris last May.

Fans were penned in and sprayed with tear gas outside the Stade de France as kick-off was delayed by 36 minutes.

Law firm Leigh Day has issued Uefa with a group personal injury claim.

The Liverpool-based firm issued the claim on behalf of 887 clients at the Liverpool District Registry of the High Court on Monday.

Leigh Day is bringing the claim on the basis European football's governing body had failed to ensure a safe and secure environment for those attending and could owe a legal liability to those who suffered physical or psychological injuries

In September, law firm Bingham's teamed up with global law company Pogust Goodhead in a lawsuit for 1,450 clients, suing Uefa for breach of contract in ticket sales and negligence over a duty of care they had towards supporters, who were harmed physically and psychologically.

Earlier this year, Uefa said it would refund Liverpool fans who had tickets for the final against Real Madrid.

The governing body and French authorities initially blamed ticketless fans for the events outside the stadium, but the independent report - which Uefa commissioned after the 28 May showpiece - said there was "no evidence" to support the "reprehensible" claims.

Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin appeared to allude to his organisation's failings at the final at Wednesday's Uefa Congress in Lisbon.

"We must never forget the mistakes of the past and we must remain humble at all times," he said.

"Unfortunately, unlike goalkeepers, leaders can never keep a 'clean sheet'. No leader can boast an unblemished record, however much they invest and however passionate, professional or experienced they are.

"There are always a few stains, a few mistakes that tarnish our reputation, errors they would love to erase.

"I am no different and Uefa is no different. The most important thing is to understand the mistake and change, not to repeat them."

BBC