Liverpool have reportedly invited both BBC News and Sky Sports to meet with club representatives to discuss the narrative surrounding the Hillsborough disaster. Sky commentator Martin Tyler came under fire on Friday morning after he appeared to link the disaster to the hooligan.
Tyler appeared on BBC Radio 4’s Today program on Friday to mark the Premier League’s 30th anniversary this month. And he said: “It was a great adventure and 3,000 live games later, not all commented by me luckily for the public, it seems to have worked. You have to remember that football was in a bit of a crisis at the time. We weren’t around long after Hillsborough and other hooligan-related issues, so it was a very difficult time for the game in general.”
Tyler’s speech was widely condemned and he later issued an apology. “This morning, while I was talking about various crises that football has faced 30 years ago, I referred to some examples, such as the Hillsborough disaster and also the controversy over hooliganism at matches,” acknowledged the veteran channel.
“These are two separate issues. There is no connection between the Hillsborough disaster and the hooliganism. I know that and I did not mean there to be. I sincerely and wholeheartedly apologize for any misunderstanding.”
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The Hillsborough disaster occurred in the 1989 FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, when 97 Liverpool fans lost their lives. The families campaigned for 27 years to legally establish how the disaster was caused, with an inquest determining in 2016 that those who died were unlawfully killed.
Tyler’s comments come after Liverpool released a statement earlier this year condemning chanting by opposition supporters. “Liverpool FC is saddened by the recent increase in vile chants about the Hillsborough disaster,” the club wrote in April. “We know the impact these disgusting insults have on the families of the 97, those who survived and everyone associated with this club.
“We are working with the relevant authorities to do everything we can to ensure these chants are completely eradicated from football and, where appropriate, reduce the full force of the law and the game’s sanctioning process to those who continue to chant them.”