Families affected by the Hillsborough disaster have compared the “terrifying” treatment of Liverpool fans in the Champions League final to falling in love with the deaths of 97 fans in 1989.
Witnesses said they saw children “trembling with fear” and adults frightened by their lives as French police fired tear gas at the crowd outside the Stade de France in Paris on Saturday night.
Uefa, the governing body of football, initially blamed the “late arrival” of Liverpool fans for the delay and later claimed that thousands had tried to enter the stadium with fake tickets.
However, this version of events was questioned by Merseyside police, who said that “the vast majority of fans behaved in an exemplary manner” in “shocking circumstances”.
David Hughes, a Liverpool fan who attended the match, said the strange organization and attempts to blame the fans echoed the Hillsborough disaster in which his father, Eric Hughes, died in April 1989.
“It simply came to our notice then. The first thing they do is blame the fans, “he told the Guardian.
“They really have to look good on themselves. You can’t have 20,000 fans under two columns under a subway. Unfortunately, we’ve had experience with that in the past and it doesn’t work.”
Hughes arrived at the Stade de France with his 17-year-old daughter, Kallie, more than three hours before the start and said it was obvious that security officers “could not cope” with the crowd.
He said he was caught in an “ambush” after the match when local youths shed tear gas and spat at Liverpool fans leaving the stadium.
Lou Brookes, whose brother Andrew died in Hillsborough, said Saturday’s deal with fans “took it all” from the 33-year-old disaster.
“That’s all that happened in Hillsborough has been reflected. Then the police said exactly the same thing,” he said.
“My friends are stuck in this [on Saturday] and one of them had his phone stolen, and another told me that he really thought he was going to die. They’ve been going to parties for over 40 years, since they were six or seven. “
Brookes said he was concerned that pre-match chaos was “pre-planned” by French police.
The Liverpool football club has demanded a formal investigation into the “unacceptable” problems affecting the most important European football club match.
The Spirit of Shankly supporters’ union said it was gathering evidence from fans about the scenes, which it described as “totally crucial and extremely dangerous”.
The match, which Liverpool lost 1-0 to Real Madrid, started 36 minutes late, as thousands of fans stayed out of the stadium even though they arrived many hours earlier.
Images showed French riot police firing tear gas at fans before the match, while groups of local men tried to force their way into the ground.
One journalist said it was “a carnage on a scale that was dangerous, to the point that the idea of losing lives was sometimes realistic.”
Brandon Lewis, the Northern Ireland minister, said Liverpool fans appeared to have been treated with a “very aggressive approach” by French police and supported the calls for investigation.
He told Sky News on Sunday: “I think it’s worrying, I think we need to make sure they’re investigating how this happened. It’s not the first time we’ve seen it abroad, in fact … We have to learn a little bit about what happened there, get to the bottom of it. “
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Merseyside police said they would make “observations” on the handling of the game to the relevant government authorities.
Police Chief Assistant Chris Green said he was concerned that fans would witness “many distressing scenes” at the party.
He added: “As with all European parties, Merseyside officials were deployed in France to work as an observatory and advising local officials, and they reported that the vast majority of fans behaved in an exemplary manner.” arriving at the turnstiles early and queuing according to the instructions and their observations will be transmitted to the relevant authorities as part of the game information “.