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‘England escaped disaster around the final of the European Championship football’ | Football

sport">This is stated in an independent study commissioned by the English Football Association FA. Some 2,000 people without tickets tried to enter the London stadium for the final between England and Italy.

sport">According to Louise Casey, who conducted the investigation, England more or less escaped disaster. According to her, various factors created a dangerous situation that could have resulted in deaths. For example, as a result of the corona crisis, there were too few experienced stewards, the police scaled up too late and a lot of people around Wembley were under the influence of alcohol and drugs.

‘Collective failure’

sport">“This was a collective failure at something the risk was foreseeable,” Casey said. “This was not just any football match, but an event of great national significance. The country was in euphoria. Sadly, a minority of England’s supporters have turned a day of national pride into a day of shame. The blame for what happened is entirely theirs.”

sport">Casey describes the events on Sunday, July 11 at the stadium as a “near miss”, so something that went just right. “I’m sure we were close to casualties and/or serious injuries for some, possibly many. That such a thing could happen in 21st century Britain is cause for concern. For something like this to happen in our national stadium, on the day of our biggest football match in 55 years, is a national disgrace.”

Wake up-call

sport">In her extensive report, the researcher makes recommendations, especially to the government and the English Football Association. “It should be a wake-up call for all of us. For too long the behavior of a minority of England fans has been tolerated as part of our national culture, rather than addressed,” Casey said.

sport">Due to the corona measures, ‘only’ 60,000 people were allowed to enter Wembley for the semi-finals and final of the European Championship. The stadium has a capacity of 90,000 visitors. The English team reached the final in their own country and that led to a crowd. Fans without tickets tried to get into the stadium anyway. Many supporters succeeded, sometimes by giving stewards money. During the final there were hardly any empty seats and there were also supporters on the stairs of the stadium. They saw England lose to Italy via penalties.

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