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Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin has accepted \u201cnot everything was perfect\u201d for fans after criticism about the Champions League final in Istanbul.<\/p>\n
There\u00a0were reports\u00a0of fans having to walk extended distances along busy roads, queue for hours for transport to and from the stadium and being left without water as Manchester City beat Inter Milan on 10 June.<\/p>\n
Uefa previously apologised after\u00a0Liverpool fans were penned in and teargassed\u00a0before last year\u2019s final in Paris.<\/p>\n
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European football\u2019s governing body had not previously addressed the issues experienced by supporters in Istanbul.<\/p>\n
However, at the opening of the four-day European Football Fans Congress in Manchester, Ceferin accepted problems had arisen in Turkey that needed to be addressed.<\/p>\n
\u201cGiven what some of you experienced recently, I would understand if I got a cold reception tonight,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are well aware that in Istanbul not everything was perfect. I am certainly not playing down the problems encountered by some.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut let us continue working together to improve what can we improve.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m thinking in particular transport links to and from the stadium, the hosting of the stadium supporters and access to water and toilets for everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Football Supporters Europe is collecting fan accounts from Istanbul to present a report to Uefa.<\/p>\n
Ceferin said Uefa\u2019s other major finals in the men\u2019s and women\u2019s games had passed without significant issues.<\/p>\n
The showpieces in 2024 \u2013 when Wembley will host the Champions League final and Germany the European Championships \u2013 will be a \u201cunique experience\u201d for fans, he added.<\/p>\n
Ceferin apologises for Paris failings<\/strong><\/p>\n Ceferin used his opening address at the National Football Museum to praise fans for\u00a0protesting against\u00a0the proposed European Super League in 2022, saying: \u201cYou were the captain and led the team in the match of our lives.\u201d<\/p>\n However, memories of the chaotic scenes in Paris remain fresh in the mind, as do the initial attempts by Uefa and French authorities to blame supporters for events outside the Stade de France.<\/p>\n Uefa\u2019s own review concluded European football\u2019s governing body bore \u201cprimary responsibility\u201d and it was \u201cremarkable\u201d it had not led to loss of life.<\/p>\n The review added that attempting to blame ticketless fans was \u201creprehensible\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cI have come here to say sorry,\u201d Ceferin said. \u201cWe would love to erase events that happened last year from our memories.<\/p>\n \u201cLast year everyone welcomed our decision to move the final from St Petersburg to Paris and in the end we all know what happened.<\/p>\n \u201cGood intentions are many times not enough. We know that and we are sorry for that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018We must rid ourselves of idiots\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n Earlier this week, West Ham were stopped from selling tickets to fans for their first Europa League group game next season due to the behaviour of fans at the Europa Conference League final in Prague.<\/p>\n Premier League referee Anthony Taylor was\u00a0also verbally harassed\u00a0at an airport in Budapest last month following the Europa League final, leading Ceferin to address fan behaviour.<\/p>\n \u201cWe must shout, call out and rid ourselves of these idiots, who discredit both football and the fans,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cLet\u2019s rid ourselves of those who pour out the hate towards football officials, the referees, Uefa staff, federations and leagues.<\/p>\n \u201cThey are fans like you. They love football like you and they have families like you. And they make mistakes like you and me.<\/p>\n \u201cI will never accept the kind of threats and intimidation and violence that some people are subjected to as we saw just recently.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n