Independent investigation into England fans' riot against Italy in the European final
The English Football Association appointed an independent commission to investigate the events leading up to the European Cup final on the 11th of this month at Wembley in London, after fans without tickets forced their way into the stadium.
It was reported that thousands of fans forced their way into the stadium by storming the gates before the match that Italy beat England on penalties after they tied 1-1 in normal and overtime.
Rioting occurred in the stands and at the entrances to the stadium after fans holding tickets clashed with those who stormed the venue.
It was estimated that nearly 200,000 fans were outside Wembley, while 67,500 people were allowed to attend the stands for the first time since the outbreak of the Coruna virus in March 2020.
The scenes of rioting among drunken fans disturbed the atmosphere of England's first final match at the continental level and the first in total since the 1966 World Cup, when it also won the title on home soil by beating West Germany 4-2 after extension.
And the English Football Association revealed on Monday that it had informed the Ministry of Digital Information, Culture, Media and Sport of the appointment of the independent commission, vowing to identify those responsible for the "shameful scenes" before and during the match.
"We are determined to understand what happened outside and then at Wembley for the Euro 2020 final on Sunday 11 July 2021," the statement read.
He continued, "The main focus of the results will be on ensuring that lessons are learned and that such shameful scenes cannot be repeated," revealing, "We continue to work with the relevant authorities to support their efforts to identify those responsible and hold them accountable."
The police released CCTV pictures of some of the fans they are seeking to interrogate.
The trio of Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka were subjected to racist abuse on social media after failing to translate penalties in the final.
The behavior of those who made their way to Wembley without tickets and who directed racist abuse of players on social media was widely condemned.
The disgraceful events raised doubts about the chances of success of the joint bid of the United Kingdom and Ireland to host the 2030 World Cup.
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