The hangover from the Champions League final, which started 36 minutes late, has been heavy in France. There is shame for the unfortunate images of their police overwhelmed and repressing Liverpool fans with pepper spray, batons and kicks, including women and children who waited impatiently, with tickets in hand, behind the fences of the stadium enclosure, and the risk of being victims of a human avalanche.
The French press was unanimous in making self-criticism and denouncing the poor security deployment and organizational failures, a fiasco that raises doubts before the 2024 Olympic Games. Its epicenter will be Saint Denis, where the stadium is located, one of the socially most explosive in the country.
The excuses of the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, the prefecture of police and UEFA, who attributed what happened to the massive presence of false tickets, were not convincing. It could be part of the problem, but not only. Among those who jumped over the gates were young locals, as they spoke French, who took advantage of the confusion. Some were intercepted in their career by English fans themselves. Thefts of tickets and cell phones were also reported. There were intruders who entered the press area and tried to steal material.
Hours before the game started, it was clear that there were not enough control personnel at the entrances or to order traffic. The Liverpool bus was late getting stuck on the motorway. There were huge queues of fans blocked as they exited the subway. Many non-party people swarmed the area with suspicious intentions. The disorder facilitated thefts. Among those who couldn't get in until almost halftime was Olympic boxing champion Estelle Mossely, with a valid ticket.
The tension continued after the game, with the surrounding areas collapsed and the riot police in action. The balance of the night was 105 arrests and 115 injuries, mostly minor. It could have been much worse.
Liverpool officials issued a statement saying they were "hugely disappointed" by the incidents and demanded an investigation. This Tuesday there will be a meeting in Paris, with the presence of UEFA.
Also calling for an investigation, in this case parliamentary, was the far-right leader and former presidential candidate Marine Le Pen, who accused Darmanin of being "incapable of maintaining order in the face of the rabble" and spoke of "humiliation for France." The former ultra Elysee candidate Éric Zemmour used the same term “rabble”, without specifying whether he was referring to the English or the marginal population of Saint Denis, a territory that he considers already almost outside the Republic, out of control.
At the other political extreme, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the radical left, called what happened "very unfortunate and disturbing", and questioned the preparation for the 2024 Games, unless he wins the legislative elections on June 12 and 19. and the new prime minister is appointed.
Unsurprisingly, the British popular press was very aggressive against the French organizers. The tabloid The Sun made a play on words and titled it "Farce Stadium", instead of Stade de France.
