French Sports Minister blames Liverpool for Paris CL chaos
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France's Sports Minister says Liverpool had failed to properly organize their supporters who came to Paris.
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France Sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera
France's Sports Minister blamed on Monday Liverpool over the chaos witnessed during the Champions League final against Real Madrid in Paris, while expressing regret that tear gas had been used against some supporters.
The French government has faced a wave of criticism from press and politicians in the UK over police handling of the match on Saturday, which saw thousands of Liverpool fans with tickets struggling to enter.
Police spraying tear gas at fans outside the stadium prior to the Champions League final. pic.twitter.com/Wzq8Gj1OIE
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) May 28, 2022
French Sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera told RTL radio that Liverpool, in contrast to Real Madrid, had failed to properly organize the supporters who came to Paris.
"Liverpool left its supporters on the loose, this is a major difference," she considered.
The minister added that there had been 30,000-40,000 Liverpool fans with fake tickets or without tickets outside the Stade de France.
A look at Paris right now as Liverpool fans are stuck outside the stadium due to poor crowd control and can’t get into the Champions League final @StoolFootball pic.twitter.com/ye8cNlA8cS
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) May 28, 2022
"We need to see where these fake tickets came from... and how they were produced in such large numbers," Oudea-Castera stressed.
In the same context, the Sports Minister indicated "that the most regrettable aspect of what happened" was that tear gas was used against families and children who came to watch the final.
I mean seriously… what is this?
— Watch LFC (@Watch_LFC) May 29, 2022
Fans literally just walking through a gate to scan their tickets and this happens? It makes no sense… pic.twitter.com/WDmgisLMST
French politicians slam Champions League chaos
Commenting on the incident, French socialist opposition leader Jean-Luc Melenchon condemned police behavior at the Champions League final, saying it reflected poorly on the country.
Melenchon described it as “lamentable” and “worrying", saying police should have ensured calm and prevented things from "going badly”, accusing them of "aggravating" the situation.
The force's chronic tendency to "confrontational policing", he said, demonstrated that it was incapable of handling large-scale athletic events such as the Rugby World Cup next year or the Paris Olympics in 2024.
Violente charge policière dans un bar à proximité de la fan zone de Liverpool à Nation, la situation dégénère. Les personnes en terrasse reçoivent des coups de matraques. #Liverpool #LIVRMA #LiverpoolVsRealMadrid pic.twitter.com/Wl0Vu2kMTd
— Remy Buisine (@RemyBuisine) May 28, 2022
On her part, far-right leader Marine Le Pen expressed worry that “all the capitals who watched it found that France was no longer able to organize large demonstrations without them degenerating.”
In an interview for Le Figaro, Le Pen blamed the event organizers, saying they would "have to explain" the "disorganization" that allowed throngs of unticketed spectators and fake-ticket holders to assault the arena and a "traditional delinquency which makes every event turn into a riot.”
France capable of hosting major sporting events
In response to criticism, Oudea-Castera insisted that France was capable of hosting major sporting events as Paris prepares to hold the Olympics in 2024 as well as the final of the rugby World Cup in 2023.
"I am not worried, I am very committed that we learn absolutely all the lessons from what happened on Saturday evening to improve everything" ahead of these major events, she noted.
Oudea-Castera will later Monday chair a meeting of French security and football officials, as well as representatives of European football's governing body UEFA.
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin and Paris police chief Didier Lallement will be in attendance.
Darmanin had blamed the incident on "thousands of British ‘supporters’, without tickets, or with false tickets," who tried to force their way into the stadium by assaulting personnel and police.
UEFA to investigate fake tickets & use of tear gas
The UEFA confirmed on Saturday that it will investigate the incident that led to the delay of the Champions League final and prompted police to use tear gas.
In a statement, the UEFA said that "In the lead-up to the game, the turnstiles at the Liverpool end became blocked by thousands [of] fans who had purchased fake tickets which did not work in the turnstiles."
According to UEFA, this situation led to a 35-minute delay in the game.
"As numbers outside the stadium continued to build up after kick-off, the police dispersed them with tear gas and forced them away from the stadium," UEFA indicated, adding that it was "sympathetic to those affected by these events and will further review these matters urgently together with the French police and authorities, and with the French Football Federation."
