On Thursday, the Paris police chief acknowledged the “failure” of last month’s Champions League final security operations and apologized for using tear gas on fans as they tried to enter the stadium.
The final match, held in Paris on 28 May, in which Real Madrid won their fourteenth title against Liverpool, was marred by scenes of chaos as the latter’s fans struggled to enter the stadium to attend the match, raising questions about the ability capital of France to host the 2024 Olympics. Didier Lallem before a Senate committee investigating a security breach that occurred during the final match of the continental competition is “clearly unfortunate.” “It was a failure because people were pushed and attacked. It was a failure because the image of the country was undermined,” he added. He expressed “regret” for allowing tear gas to be used to keep fans away from the stadium ahead of the match, but added that “there was no other way” to ease the growing pressure on the goal.
“We needed to push people back. We ordered people to leave and then used tear gas… This is the only way we know to scare off the crowd, except for electric batons,” Lalman explained. The police chief urged Liverpool and Real Madrid fans to file complaints if they were victims of ticket counterfeiting or street crimes outside the stadium “so that we can find those responsible and bring them to justice.”
Lalman was pressured by conflicting figures presented by Home Secretary Gerald Darmannan, who blamed riots outside the stadium and delaying the match between 30,000 and 40,000 fans without tickets or with fake tickets. In this context, Lalman said he was responsible for the figure and based it on figures provided by transport companies in Paris and “reports” from officers on the ground. “Maybe I made a mistake with the number I gave the minister. I have never claimed that it is absolutely accurate,” he added. He acknowledged that there were not 30,000 to 40,000 people “at the gates of the stadium”, but confirmed that several thousand were in its vicinity. The allegations angered Liverpool supporters as well as senior British politicians who accused France of unfairly trying to shift the blame from the police. Liverpool Mayor Steve Rotheram is due to testify before a Senate committee later on Thursday.
