UEFA has “primary responsibility” for the incidents “that almost caused disaster” in the 2021/22 Champions League final, can be read in a report by a group of experts commissioned by the governing body of European football.
This is evident from the conclusions of the independent investigation led by former education minister Tiago Brandão Rodrigues into the incidents in and around the Stade de France in Paris. during Real Madrid’s win against Liverpool (1-0)it is UEFA, “as owner of the event, that bears primary responsibility for the failures that almost led to disaster”.
In the document Lusa had access to, the finger is also pointed at the police authorities of the French capital and the French Football Federation (FFF) for the security problems recorded on May 28, 2022, as well as the difficulty of “maintaining order”, which continues to “hold the UEFA of responsibilities” .
The ‘gluing’ of the British to ‘hooligans’, violent supporters, was ‘inexplicable’, the report says, after they were initially accused by the French government during the disrespect last May.
The extensive list of conclusions drawn by the independent Commission of Inquiry, led by Brandão Rodrigues, mentions poor management of the number of people arriving through the various entrances to the venue, deficiencies in access, groups of local residents attacking supporters, trying to provoke confrontations , bad police and lack of contingency plans.
The abrupt change of location, from Saint Petersburg (due to the war in Ukraine) to Paris, was another factor pointed out, in addition to issues such as ticketing, a dual system causing confusion and problems with counterfeit tickets, and the attempt to prevent entry by those without a ticket, are criticisms left in the penultimate chapter of the document, even if the question regarding forged (or non-existent) tickets is not decisive for its importance in disrupting the event.
There have been criticisms at various times, including the postponement of the kick-off due to the skirmishes and the ‘chaos’ involved in access to the stands, but the ‘confusing’ way in which this happened is not lost, as is the lack of communication from these measure outside the stadium.
“Bad planning” and “lack of oversight”
The Saint-Denis Convention, drafted by the Council of Europe to change the paradigm of security in sporting events towards an integrated approach that puts aside the focus on violence, has been cited as an example and a “shared obligation” of the UEFA and competent local authorities, which was not respected.
The commission is leaving a total of 21 substantiated recommendations to UEFA and the authorities after it became clear, in relation to the incidents at the Stade de France, that “what happened in the ‘Champions’ final was largely the result of poor planning, lack of oversight, poor interoperability between different stakeholders and lack of contingency”.
“We agree with the conclusions of the Senate of France in this regard. However, as the organizer of the event, We believe that it was ultimately UEFA that bore the responsibility for the failure of these various ‘stakeholders’ to fulfill their shared obligation to respect the Saint-Denis Convention.”reads in the document.
For example, the police model for the final was “inconsistent and not fit for purpose”, with an approach “too securitistic, with unilateral actions by the police” and “ill-considered ideas about threats to public order”, poor cooperation and the overuse of tear gas and other dispersal materials.
Transparency, best cooperation, supervision and surveillance practices, as well as self-examination by the competent authorities, are part of the list of recommendations to the governing body of European football, while others, related to the response to security and public order, are left to the police and the municipality of Paris.
An earlier report had already pointed to organizational and police failures in the match, the biggest poster game in European club football and one of the biggest sporting events in the world, recalling the proximity of the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Source: DN
