An independent review of the 2022 UEFA Champions League Final was issued on Tuesday 14 February 2023. Pogust Goodhead, who is running a legal case against UEFA, alongside Liverpool firm, Binghams Solicitors, have issued a response.
Tony Winterburn, Partner at Pogust Goodhead, said: “This is a hugely damning report for UEFA, which clearly strengthens the case we are bringing on behalf of Liverpool fans.
“We are calling on UEFA, and in particular its President, Aleksander Ceferin, personally, to do the right thing and publicly accept responsibility. There must be compensation for all those fans affected by this horrific event. It is clear UEFA’s safety plan was written around a myth that Liverpool fans were going to cause trouble that day. It is imperative that myth stops now to avoid further unacceptable incidents occurring in the future, with possibly tragic consequences.”
The firms already have more than 2,000 fans registered to be a part of the litigation.
Tony continued: “An apology is a start, but it simply does not go far enough. We want our clients, alongside all other fans who have been proven to be blameless, to be compensated for the psychological and physical trauma they experienced on that day and for the subsequent trauma they experienced after the event when authorities continued to place blame at their door despite knowing this was untrue.
“Recommendations which were previously made in 2015 about safety at the arena and subsequently made again, now eight years on, must be implemented in full as a matter of urgency. These changes are vital if football fans are to feel safe at future events.”
A letter will be sent to UEFA later this week from Pogust Goodhead and Binghams, inviting them to accept responsibility and discuss how they propose to recompense the Liverpool fans for the trauma they have suffered.
You can read more about the case through the following news outlets:
The Independent: UEFA chief must accept responsibility for Paris chaos, claims law firm
The Guardian: Lawyers of traumatised Liverpool fans say report blaming Uefa boosts case
The Telegraph: Thousands of Liverpool fans to sue UEFA for Champions League final chaos
