On May 28, 2022, several thousand Reds fans experienced a nightmare: first crammed into the narrow and crowded stadium access tunnels, they found themselves trapped behind the metal barriers surrounding the stadium, before being gassed tear gas thrown at them by the police.

"I think the scars left by the final still hurt us all," Joe Blott, chairman of "Spirit of Shankly", a group of Liverpool supporters, told AFP.

Many Reds fans are still struggling to overcome their fear of returning to a stadium.

"The fact that they don't want to go to a game anymore because of what they went through is tragic," Blott said.

For Ian Byrne, MP for the north of Liverpool, the incidents of the final are felt even in the "horrible" atmosphere this season at Anfield, the mythical stadium of the Reds known for its fervor, regardless of the mixed results of the club.

"I have the impression that the supporters are like anesthetized when they attend the matches. It seems that all the passion has flown away", he analyzes.

Hillsborough tragedy

The incidents that occurred near the Stade de France had delayed the kick-off of the final by 35 minutes, lost 1-0 against Real Madrid.

More than the defeat, the chaos, the beatings they suffered and the violent police response rekindled in many Liverpool fans the trauma of the Hillsborough stadium tragedy in 1989, in which 97 people died of suffocation or mortally wounded.

In Paris, this time, no one died, but the lack of preparation of the authorities before the meeting and the accusations against the supporters that followed still had repercussions on the health and morale of the supporters.

"A lot of people are still marked by what they have been through," insists Ian Byrne, also a supporter of the Reds.

According to the Hillsborough Survivors Support Association, two survivors of the 1989 tragedy committed suicide after the events at the Stade de France.

While it is impossible to establish a direct link, these incidents may have rekindled old traumas.

Liverpool supporters gather on April 15, 2022 at Anfield in front of the eternal flame of the Memorial dedicated to the victims of the Hillsborough tragedy © Paul ELLIS / AFP / Archives

After the final, the French government and UEFA blamed the events on English fans, accusing them of having "arrived late" and denouncing a "massive, industrial and organized fraud of counterfeit tickets", in the words of Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin.

But a Senate investigation conducted in July contradicted these accusations and pointed to the "failures" of the authorities.

The rapporteurs particularly underlined their lack of adaptation to manage the flow of spectators.

An independent English report concluded that the unjustified use of tear gas by the French police constituted "criminal aggression".

Class action

Reds supporters fear that the authorities will not learn from what happened to improve the reception conditions at the Stade de France, which must notably host matches of the Rugby World Cup in 2023 and the 2024 Olympics.

Liverpool supporters show their solidarity during the Champions League final against Real Madrid at the Stade de France on May 28, 2022 © FRANCK FIFE / AFP / Archives

The failures "could easily recur because no measures have been taken to remedy them", warns Daniel Austin, journalist and supporter of the Reds, present at the Stade de France in May.

Nearly 2,000 Liverpool supporters have sued UEFA in a class action claim for breach of contract over ticket sales and negligence in the duty of care to supporters.

"UEFA must significantly review the way it treats supporters in general," hopes Daniel Austin, who took part in UEFA's investigation into the incidents in Paris, the results of which are expected in the coming days.

Liverpool supporters expect nothing more from European football's governing body than an apology and full acknowledgment of their responsibility for this fiasco.

© 2022 AFP