French minister Darmanin apologises to Liverpool fans after Champions League final chaos

Liverpool fans have received an apology from France’s interior minister Gerald Darmanin, after he initially blamed Reds supporters for chaos at the Champions League final.

The European showpiece in Paris was twice delayed for what UEFA initially described as “security reasons” outside the Stade de France due to crowd congestion.

Real Madrid went on to lift the trophy by defeating Liverpool 1-0 after the match started 36 minutes late at 21:36 local time, but it was events outside the ground that dominated the headlines.

Initially, France’s government insisted that between 30,000 and 40,000 fans had arrived without valid tickets.

UEFA wishes to sincerely apologise to all spectators who had to experience or witness frightening and distressing events in the build-up to the UEFA Champions League final last week.

An independent review will seek to establish a full picture of what occurred.

Full details:

— UEFA (@UEFA) June 3, 2022

However, Paris police chief Didier Lallement, along with some of Emmanuel Macron’s political opponents, questioned those figures.

Earlier this month, Lallement apologised to Liverpool fans for the use of tear gas and the heavy-handed policing they were subjected to.

UEFA also issued a formal apology and on Tuesday, a month on from the match, Darmanin admitted at least part of the responsibility lies with the French authorities.

“Should things have been managed better at the Stade de France? The answer is yes,” Darmanin told RTL radio.

“Am I partly responsible? The answer is yes. Of course, I readily apologise to everyone who suffered from this bad management of the event.”