UEFA to incorporate fans when organising Champions League finals
UEFA said on Friday that it would include spectators in the “planning and execution” of finals as part of its efforts to put into practise suggestions given by an independent panel in the wake of the upheaval at the 2022 Champions League championship game.
Millions of Liverpool fans were denied entry to the Stade de France for the match on May 28th, which Real Madrid won 1-0, causing the Champions League final to be delayed by 36 minutes.
Following the publication of the evaluation in February, UEFA, the organisation that governs football in Europe, issued an apology to Liverpool for at first accusing the Merseyside club’s supporters for the chaos. Through the organisation Football Supporters Europe (FSE), UEFA claimed it had subsequently engaged in “positive dialogue” with fans to assure their participation in future finals.
“At UEFA, we are fully committed to ensuring that every football fan can enjoy their team’s appearance in a UEFA final in a safe, secure, and welcoming environment,” UEFA General Secretary Theodore Theodoridis said in a statement.
“We have developed and implemented comprehensive operational measures which incorporate the recommendations… and the valuable input of fan groups to enhance safety and security at our club and national team competition finals.”
To establish how many fans would be travelling to the host cities, UEFA said it would work with FSE, its supporters network, and the finalists. It would also make arrangements with local authorities, including as setting up fan zones and enhancing fan communication.
“FSE representatives are also integrated into the matchday operational teams for each final and are part of the revised comprehensive debrief process to ensure lessons learned are integrated into future finals,” UEFA said.
The number of safety and security officers assigned to cover finals has been raised, according to UEFA, and crowd forecasting reports have been ordered for finals this year. The organisation added that a procedure has been devised to prevent a recurrence of last year’s incident, in which stadium CCTV footage was erased following the game.
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