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Champions League: Liverpool fans invited to report crimes at Stade de France

A fan is held by a police officer and a steward inside the stadium by the turnstiles as the match is delayed
Fans faced chaotic scenes before – and after – the game in Paris

Fans who fell victim to crime at last month’s Champions League final have been invited to file complaints by French authorities.

Supporters of both Liverpool and Real Madrid said they were attacked by gangs as they left the Stade de France in Paris following the match.

There were also reports of fans being robbed or assaulted before the game, which the Spanish champions won 1-0.

Fans can fill in a complaint form via the French Embassy in London.

A statementexternal-link on the embassy’s website says “foreign nationals who were victims of crime during the Champions League Final on 28 and 29 May 2022 can file a complaint to the French judicial authorities”.

“These temporary arrangements reflect the French Government’s wish to give foreign nationals the opportunity to get in direct contact with the French judicial authorities regarding crimes of which they believe they were victims during the event,” it adds.

The announcement comes a day after MPs condemned the experience of Liverpool supporters at the event as “terrifying” and “chaotic”.

The matter was raised by Liverpool West Derby MP Ian Byrne, who was at the final.

As well as the attacks on fans, those at the game described heavy-handed policing, organisational chaos and overcrowding.

European football’s governing body, Uefa, has commissioned an independent review into the problems suffered by fans following complaints from both clubs involved in the final.

The final itself was delayed by more than half an hour, with Uefa initially blaming the late arrival of fans.

Uefa, police and French ministers also said fans with fake or no tickets were to blame for the pre-match chaos.

Uefa has apologised to the fans of both clubs, though many, including Byrne, want a full retraction of what they say were “smears”.

However it is the post-match trouble which has sparked debate in France, with one police union head describing how they “had never seen anything like it”.

“They were attacking women, children, old people, and then merging back into the crowd when the police came,” Patrice Ribeiro of Synergie-officiers told Le Figaro newspaper.

A Real Madrid statement last week also spoke of their supporters being “attacked, harassed, set upon, mugged. Some even had to spend the night in hospital because of their injuries.”

Former Liverpool defender and now TV pundit Jim Beglin was among those caught up in the scenes, describing it as “the scariest I’ve ever experienced”.

“Organised gangs set about mugging departing fans. We ran a gauntlet of thuggery on our way to the Metro. Not a police officer in sight. Witnessed so many ambush attacks on unsuspecting attendees. Reprehensible.” he said.

Liverpool City Region mayor Steve Rotheram also told how he had his phone stolen by pickpockets near the stadium “like many others”.

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Source: BBC

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