Liverpool have begged UEFA to fully implement all the recommendations made in the highly critical independent report in last year’s chaotic Champions League final.
European football’s governing body has commissioned a team led by Portuguese Dr Tiago Brandao Rodrigues to investigate issues such as dangerous traffic jams, supporters attacked by locals and tear gas by police and the all-round operation at the Stade de France in May. blame at the feet of UEFA and the French authorities.
According to the report, UEFA bore “primary responsibility for failures”, which almost led to the final against Real Madrid becoming a “mass fatal catastrophe”.
“Last night UEFA published the Independent Panel Report on the shortcomings we saw first hand in Paris and in this context we call on UEFA and others at the top of the football regulation pyramid to come together and take positive and transparent action. to make sure there are no more ‘near misses’,” a statement from Liverpool said.
“We implore UEFA to fully implement the recommendations outlined by the panel – however difficult – to ensure that supporter safety is the number one priority at the heart of every UEFA football match.”
“We knew it was crucial to understand why the supporters of both Liverpool and Real Madrid were in a situation where the safety of supporters was being compromised,” the statement said.
“We were determined to ensure that a robust investigation was carried out so that lessons are learned to ensure that the safety of football supporters in Europe is never compromised again.”
The report also completely cleared fans who were initially criticized by UEFA for arriving late to the ground and causing kick-off to be delayed by more than half an hour.
French authorities also falsely claimed that the problems were due to thousands of fans without tickets or fakes trying to gain entry.
“In the immediate aftermath of that night in Paris, shocking false stories were spread; stories that have since been totally refuted,” said the Liverpool statement.
“The French Senate independent report published in July 2022 found that Liverpool supporters were unfairly and falsely blamed for the chaotic scenes to divert attention from the real organizational failures.”
Many fans who attended the Stade de France were survivors, or relatives of victims, of the 1989 Hillsborough disaster, which killed 97 people and for them in particular, the events of that night were particularly traumatic.
“It is shocking that more than 30 years after the Hillsborough disaster, every club and our fan base is subject to such fundamental safety deficiencies that have had such a devastating impact on so many,” the statement said.
“But even more worrying is the realization that for families, friends and survivors of Hillsborough, Paris has only exacerbated their suffering.
“Our thoughts go out to all our fans who have suffered as a result of Paris and we would like to remind them of the mental health care we provided in the days following the disaster at the UEFA Champions League final in Paris.
“As a football club with a proud history in Europe, we call on UEFA to do the right thing and implement the 21 recommendations to ensure the safety of all football supporters attending future UEFA football matches.”