On May 29, 2022, British football fans and officials condemned French police for using tear gas on Liverpool supporters ahead of the Champions League final in Paris.
Paul Machin, a fan, described the scene as “unlike anything I’ve seen at a football match before”, condemning the French police’s behaviour as “totally and utterly reprehensible”.
Andrew Whittle, another supporter, told Sky News that fans were “funnelled into one place” and the crush was a “real Hillsborough sort of moment”.
The frightening scenes outside the Stade de France have prompted comparisons with the 1989 stadium disaster at a Liverpool match in Sheffield, which caused 97 deaths in a crush and prompted a major overhaul of stadium safety standards.
On the same day, it was also the anniversary of the Heysel Stadium disaster in 1985, where 39 people were killed as Juventus fans tried to flee Liverpool fans.
Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish had laid a wreath in honour of the victims ahead of the match.
UEFA blamed “fake tickets which did not work in the turnstiles” for a 35-minute delay to the final between Liverpool and Real Madrid.
However, fans and officials have disputed this explanation, with Ian Byrne, the MP for Liverpool, West Derby, describing the match as “one of the worst experiences in my life, it was absolutely appalling”.
Merseyside Police said in a statement that there were “distressing scenes at the match,” where its officers were deployed in an observer capacity.
Liverpool Football Club said they were “hugely disappointed” that their supporters had been subjected to an “unacceptable” breakdown of the security perimeter” at the stadium.
Former England star Gary Lineker, now a BBC presenter, who was at the match, described the organisation of the event as “shambolic and disorganised”.
