UEFA speaks of “thousands of fake tickets”
Later, in a statement, UEFA gave a reason other than the supposedly late arrival. “In the run-up to the game, the turnstiles at Liverpool Corner were blocked by thousands of fans who had bought counterfeit tickets that didn’t work at the turnstiles.”
At its events, such as the finals of European competitions, UEFA now mostly sells mobile tickets that have to be shown with a mobile phone. Many images showed Liverpool fans with classic paper cards. Were those said “thousands” fakes? Not necessarily. According to information from the sports show, at least Liverpool fans in the official contingent received paper tickets from UEFA instead of mobile tickets at the request of their club. It remains unclear how secure the collection of “thousands” of counterfeit cards is.
The police also said that fans without tickets or with fakes exerted pressure without naming the magnitude. According to the police, another problem was some people climbing over the fences to get into the stadium.
Pepper spray against waiting fans
A lot of fans didn’t get their money’s worth. Many were in the stadium just before half-time, if at all. Waiting fans with tickets were sprayed with pepper spray, videos from journalists showed.
Even just before the break, fans were still queuing outside to get into the stadium. A fan told the British broadcaster “Sky” that he had waited hours with several other fans to get to the stadium. They didn’t succeed at first, instead they were attacked with pepper spray. Many fans felt the procedure was inappropriate.
Refurbishment announced by UEFA
For UEFA and the security authorities, it is now a matter of processing many aspects such as the process of the controls, the need for a robust police operation and the information policy towards those waiting. The core question remains: Why is a stadium that has hosted several European Cup finals and matches from the 1998 World Cup and the 2016 European Championship so overwhelmed in terms of organization?