Crowd troubles delaying the Champions League final in Paris have become a political issue ahead of the French parliamentary elections, and with France due to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup and the 2024 Olympics.
Crowd troubles delaying the Champions League final in Paris have become a political issue ahead of the French parliamentary elections, and with France due to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup and the 2024 Olympics.
The French government hosted an emergency meeting on Monday after crowd trouble last weekend champions league football finalwho is the sports minister of france that was initially caused by the fans of Liverpool Turning without a valid ticket.
“We need to take all necessary steps to ensure that this never happens again”, said French Sports Minister Amelie Oudia-Castera at the start of the meeting.
Political issue before election
Crowd trouble at the match in Paris has become a political issue with France ahead of the French parliamentary elections in mid-June and hosting the 2023 Rugby World Cup and the 2024 Olympics.
“The pictures are regrettable, they are disturbing because we can clearly see that we are not prepared for events like the Olympic Games”, far-right leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon said on Sunday, while his far-right rival Marine Le Pen said. The incident is a “disgrace” to France.
Liverpool fan or Parisian?
Far-right politician Eric Zemour also said that the problem was mainly caused by local youth from the nearby Paris Seine St Denis district rather than Liverpool fans.
Oudea-Castera said Liverpool fans without valid tickets were to blame for early crowd problems in the Champions League final after local youth tried to make their way into the game.
Oudea-Castera said, “We really have to note that the first thing that happened was a mass gathering of British supporters of the Liverpool club, without tickets or fake tickets.” rtl radio on Monday.
“When there will be so many people at the entrance of the stadium, there will be people trying to make their way through the doors of the Stade de France, and a certain number of young people from the surrounding area try to get in. mingled with the crowd,” she told French radio RTL.
kickoff delayed
had to match 35 minutes late When the police tried to stop people trying to forcefully enter the National Stadium without tickets, while some ticket holders complained that they were not allowed inside.
Television footage showed images of young men, not seen wearing red Liverpool jerseys, jumping from the stadium gate and running away from security to join the match. Riot police fired tear gas shells at other people including children, said a Reuters Witness.
Britain’s technology minister Chris Phillip said he was shocked by the images. “I was horrified to see pictures of fans including children, disabled fans being pepper sprayed by French police,” he said. “And from the photos I saw there was no clear justification for that kind of behavior.”
Club demands ‘transparent investigation’
Liverpool chief executive Billy Hogan said the club wanted a “transparent investigation” by UEFA’s governing body. Britain’s Sports Minister Nadine Dorries also urged UEFA to investigate.
Oudea-Castera said Saturday’s match had no issues with Real Madrid’s supporters and the Spanish side managed to control their traveling fans better than Liverpool.
He added that France still had to investigate increased security in high-risk football matches, adding further trouble after Saint-Etienne was relegated from Ligue 1 of France on Sunday.