Thousands of Liverpool fans attending the Champions League final have sent their testimonials to UEFA
Liverpool Football Club has handed over thousands of references to an independent body after fans shared their shocking experience in the Champions League final in Paris.
After the Reds faced Real Madrid in the biggest game of club football in Europe, a report by the French Senate found that "several organisational errors" led to the "fiasco" of the Stade de France, and it was followed by an independent investigation.
A dossier of testimonials (including written reports, photos and videos) from over 8,500 fans has now been submitted to UEFA's independent panel for review.
Following the defeat in the final, Liverpool FC invited fans to share their experience of the
event to help gather evidence, which was then forwarded to UEFA. More than 9,000 participants submitted their own personal accounts, with more than 8,500 allowing the club to use the information they submitted as part of the survey.
event to help gather evidence, which was then forwarded to UEFA. More than 9,000 participants submitted their own personal accounts, with more than 8,500 allowing the club to use the information they submitted as part of the survey.
Liverpool chief executive Billy Hogan thanked contributing supporters for their efforts. In a statement on the club's official website, Hogan said: "I’d like to thank all our supporters who took time to write to us after Paris to tell us their first-hand experiences from that day and night. Having read and analysed the testimonials, we know that our supporters suffered harrowing experiences that nobody should have to face going to a football match or any other events. We have analysed the testimonials to pick out recurring themes from the submissions.
"The purpose of providing an executive summary and the testimonials themselves is to help the independent panel understand that human beings were caught up in the chaos on May 28 and the experience of that day and night will live with them forever. We want the independent panel to understand that behind the report and analysis there are real stories of real people who were subjected to some appalling and totally avoidable experiences."
After reviewing all submissions, the club has identified eight key issues that have contributed to the worrying situation on matchday. They include:
- Access point congestion
- Insufficient travel information for supporters
- Problems in the outer ticket warning area and the inner gate
- Strong reports of riot police over-tactical
- Lack of communication with fans outside the stadium
- The emotional impact of late kick-off reasons
- Problems entering and leaving the stadium