The thread speaks for itself. Almost a week now to digest what happened pre and post game. The stuff I've read and watched so far would really make you question why bother anymore. Anyway, fully expecting the club to take libel if not legal action against the governing bodies concerned and I wouldn't be surprised if R Madrid did the same.
Seems that Real are rowing in with us on this whole debacle. Their spokeman says they had fans hospitalized overnight while police offered zero protection from roving bands of youths. Some of the comments and language being used by the French government is a joke. Amile Oudea Castera literally blamed the "Liverpool fans being let out in the wild" Another comment was the 29 arrests were made and half of these were Liverpool fans....erm wouldnt that make the other half Madrid fans? and you DO tend to get the odd trouble maker at games so 29 arrests at the biggest club game in the world is hardly license to break out the tear gas And the Interior minister who claimed Industrial level fraud needs to check his numbers 15% of these "fakes" (inverted commas as we've all seen Robbos family tickets being called fakes) were stopped at the first gate/check/whatever it was with 2 vans parked across the road - he claimed 40k tickets (lets remember we were only allocated 25k) were fake - ok SHOW us 40k confiscated fake tickets. Or even the 6k fakes caught at the first checkpoint. He wont and cant because he pulled that number out of his hole. We all saw the speed (or lack thereof) the Liverpool fans were moving into the ground or even being denied entry. Anyone think between the time the game went live on telly with as the commentators put it about 50% of the Liverpool end filled to the time the game actually started when we shouldve had 25k (give or take) that those French and Uefa authorities checked 40k tickets? Any time I saw an update from outside the ground it was a trickle that was making it into the ground. I tell you what genuinely frightens me - the thought of the Olympics and Special Olympics coming to that kip. I went to Paris on a school trip as a 15 year old, and we were warned not to be anywhere around the major sights after dusk as thats when the junkies and gangs came out to "play" their favorite game of mug the tourists. 35 years later and it hasnt changed for the better one little bit.
For me the most sickening part was the sign in the stadium at 8.55pm saying the game was delayed due to late arrival of fans. I was very shook and I saw red when I saw that as I knew the narrative had begun. I’ve being to Stade De France 3 times and this was the second poorly organised event I really hope something comes from this. UEFA are corrupt from the top down. By a lot of accounts the Europa League final wasn’t a picnic for fans either, so they can’t fob everything off on the French organisers Paying nearly €500 for a ticket and it doesn’t even guarantee you can get into the ground, is unforgivable. I’m so thankful no one was killed, but there will be emotional scars to 1000s of people, which won’t heal easily, so I’m Hopeful people can get the support they need.
the first check point didn’t exist at 7pm but the vans remained blocking the way and 1 police officer looking down at it. I’d love to know why they stopped this check point
Anyone here caught up in either not getting into the stadium or getting beaten up / mugged leaving the stadium? Some of the stories I've read on another Liverpool Forum are frightening.
Heard something on the radio this evening about the CCTV footage from the evening of the champions league final having been deleted? Anyone else hear this? If this is true, then it really shows up the French authorities in a bad light.
Worth a listen https://podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/night-of-terror-neil-atkinson/id1479184171?i=1000565849790
Horrendous. There's not a shadow of a doubt that but for Liverpool fans this would have been a disaster. 100%
And still the UEFA rep is doubling down on it being everyones fault except the people who were supposed to organise the event. Up to yesterday he was still claiming 30-40k fakes tickets - which like the CCTV has disappeared and the "fact" that UEFA's risk assessment highlighted probable problems with Liverpool supporters invading the pitch and causing trouble outside - where the fcuk they got that from I have no idea. Can anyone even remember the last time they saw Liverpool fans invade a pitch? Not sure if This Kellen gent is the same guy who made the erroneous claims in the first place but at least he did seem to row back SOMEWHAT. We're down to 2600 fake tickets - again anyone know how what % of paper tickets can be expected to be fake at ANY event? But he immediately padded that with "many more tickets didnt make it to the checkpoints"...erm so how do you know how many more there were if they werent actually presented? Thankfully the French senate does seem to be apportioning blame or at least wanting to - where its deserved. Theres simply too much evidence in the form of verbal accounts, social media accounts, live tv actually showing fans being pepper sprayed for seemingly no better reason than the cop HAD some - for bullshit excuses and suddenly missing cctv and fake tickets to be taken for anything other than what they are - a face saving exercise by a corrupt football agency by attempting to blacken a group of supporters who have had far too much of that happen to them in their history. Watching the game and buildup that night on tv I turned to my wife and said to her that I had a really bad feeling that this could turn into another disaster, it had all the ingredients and its only down to the patience and self restraint of the Liverpool fans that it didnt, and they are to be commended on that - not have a ridiculous effort at casting the blame on them because UEFA were too busy making sure the prawn cocktail (thanks Roy) brigade were comfy rather that the actual fans of BOTH football clubs involved. Is it any wonder Madrid havent given up on a super league