France govt hosts emergency meeting after Liverpool fans blamed for Champions League final trouble
The Hindu
The crowd trouble that delayed the Champions League final in Paris has become a political issue ahead of French parliamentary elections, and with France due to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup and the 2024 Olympics
The French government hosted an emergency meeting on Monday after crowd trouble marred last weekend's Champions League football final, which France's sports minister said was initially caused by Liverpool fans turning up without valid tickets.
"We need to take all the necessary steps to make sure this never happens again", said French sports minister Amelie Oudea-Castera, at the start of the meeting.
The crowd trouble at the match in Paris has become a political issue ahead of French parliamentary elections in mid-June, and with France due to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup and the 2024 Olympics.
"The images are lamentable, they are disturbing because we can clearly see that we are not prepared for events such as the Olympic Games", said far-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon on Sunday, while his far-right rival Marine Le Pen called the incident a "humiliation" for France.
Far-right politician Eric Zemmour had also said the trouble was caused principally by local youths from the nearby Paris Seine Saint Denis district, rather than Liverpool fans.
Oudea-Castera said Liverpool fans without valid tickets were responsible for the initial crowd problems at the Champions League final, with the problem then exacerbated by local youths trying to force their way in to the game.
"What we really have to bear in mind is that what happened first of all was this mass gathering of British supporters of the Liverpool club, without tickets, or with fake tickets," Oudea-Castera told RTL Radio on Monday.
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