UEFA said on Tuesday it would refund all Liverpool supporters who attended last year’s Champions League final between the English club and Real Madrid at the Stade de France in Paris.
Heavily criticized in an independent report published last month for organizational failures that “almost led to disaster”, European football’s governing body said the refund scheme would cover all of Liverpool’s nearly 20,000 allocations, as well as Real supporters and other affected spectators. problems outside the stadium.
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Criteria for refund
“Refunds will be available to all fans … where the most difficult circumstances are reported,” UEFA said, adding that all ticket holders who did not enter the stadium at the scheduled kick-off time, or were unable to enter at all, will also receive refund.
“According to these criteria, the special refund scheme covers the entire allocation of Liverpool FC tickets for the final, which is 19 618 tickets.”
Egg on UEFA’s face
Real’s 1-0 win at France’s national stadium on May 28 was overshadowed by events outside, with kick-off delayed 37 minutes as fans struggled to access the stadium after police channeled them into congested bottlenecks as they approached.
Police then fired tear gas at thousands of supporters who were locked inside a metal fence at the edge of the stadium.
UEFA tried to blame Liverpool fans for arriving late despite thousands having been detained for hours outside the stadium before kick-off.