The Mayor of Liverpool has said the 'shambolic' treatment of fans in Paris on the day of the Champions League Final 'could have caused loss of life'.
Liverpool supporters were caught up in awful scenes outside the Stade de France ahead of the Champions League Final against Real Madrid on Saturday. Reds supporters were targeted with tear-gas both before and after kick-off as men, women and children used their football shirts to cover their mouths and eyes.
Both UEFA and French politicians were quick to try and blame Liverpool fans for s upposedly being late or arriving with fake tickets, but countless videos, images and accounts strongly suggest the problems were created by a lack of organisation and a hostile response from French police.
READ MORE: Liverpool FC issue request to all fans who went to Champions League final
Thousands of fans, MP's and journalists have all spoken out against the brutal way police treated fans at the Stade de France. Mayor of Liverpool Joanne Anderson released a statement after the match and said she was 'disgusted' by the 'brutal' treatment of fans in the French capital.
Now, the mayor has formally written to Foreign Secretary Liz Truss calling for an investigation into the disgraceful scenes at the Champions League final. In the letter she states the funnelling of fans into narrow walkways could have 'caused serious injury or even loss of life'.
Here is The Mayor of Liverpool's full letter.
Dear Foreign Secretary,
I am writing to you regarding the appalling scenes at the Stade de France on Saturday evening during the Champions League final. The reports of the logistical and organisational failures surrounding the final are numerous.
Thousands of Liverpool fans were funnelled through narrow walkways, kettled for hours without water, food, or access to toilets. In addition, too few turnstiles were open leading to the distressing scenes of thousands of fans crushed against barriers.
Control points were abandoned, allowing dozens of locals to force their way in without tickets. For many fans, this was a once in a lifetime trip - an opportunity to follow their team and visit Europe.
The very least they could have expected was to be kept safe by the authorities, yet it turned into a frightening nightmare. Many have returned to Liverpool traumatised.
With echoes of Hillsborough, we are only grateful that there was no loss of life at this absolutely shambolic event. I am further disgusted by the multiple videos of French police attacking Liverpool fans, along with the widespread and indiscriminate use of teargas and pepper-spray, which I witnessed first-hand.
Many children attended with their parents and also suffered this brutality. Yet despite this heavy-handed treatment of Liverpool fans, multiple reports describe the police being entirely absent after the game, when we understand a number of fans were attacked and mugged by local gangs.
Adding further insult to these traumatic events have been the reaction of UEFA and senior members of the French government, who have sought to distract from their own failures. UEFA announced that the delay to kick-off was caused by the late arrival of fans, which overlooks the fact that the vast majority of Liverpool fans who were unable to take their seat had arrived at the Stade de France hours before.
Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said there had been 'massive, industrial-scale' ticket fraud and he also accused thousands of Liverpool fans of forcing their way into the stadium and being violent towards stewards.
The Sports Minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra has attempted to blame the problems at the Stade de France on "mass gathering of the British supporters of the Liverpool club, without tickets, or with fake tickets. Such allegations are not only deeply irresponsible but are also contrary to the videos and eyewitness accounts from multiple Liverpool fans on the ground.
Merseyside Police - who were there in an observatory and advisory capacity - have reported that the vast majority of fans behaved in an exemplary manner, arriving at turnstiles early and queuing as directed These incidents are a collective disgrace and I am calling on the British Government to demand a full investigation into the planning, stewarding and policing of the event.
This investigation should answer the following:
1. Why were Liverpool fans funnelled through narrow walkways and left crushed against fences for hours, which could have caused serious injury or even loss of life?
2. Why were there only two gates operational for Liverpool fans, and why were these gates seemingly closed, without any safe alternative arrangements being made?
3. Why were tickets not checked on the approach to the stadium, and why were ticketless people allowed to get so close to the stadium entrances?
4. Why was the police response so extremely heavy- handed and disproportionately targeted at Liverpool fans?
5. Why did the police fail to protect Liverpool fans from being attacked and mugged?
6. Why was the announcement blaming Liverpool fans for the delay to kick-off made when the facts of the situation remained unclear?
Reports of a meeting between French police, UEFA, the French Football Federation and national and local authorities are concerning and any investigation into these disgraceful scenes should be entirely independent. Liverpool Football Club, Merseyside Police, the Spirit of Shankly supporters' group and Football Supporters' Europe should be involved throughout.
I also demand apologies to all fans of Liverpool from UEFA, Mr Darmanin and Ms Oudéa-Castéra for their irresponsible and misleading comments. This disgusting attempt to victim-blame fans in an attempt to deflect from establishment failures is worryingly reminiscent of the British press and government's reaction to Hillsborough.
The people responsible for these failures and these comments must be held to account. Finally, looking closer to home, these horrendous scenes give greater credence to the need for a Hillsborough Law to be passed in the UK.
A law which gives greater support to victims and bereaved family members and ensures greater accountability for police and other public officials is desperately needed to ensure the decades long suffering of the Hillsborough families is not repeated I look forward to your response.
Yours sincerely,
Joanne Anderson, Mayor of Liverpool
