PARIS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 31st May, 2022) About 70% of paper tickets for the Champions League final between Real Madrid and Liverpool in France were fake, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said on Monday.
The final match was held at the Stade de France in Paris on Saturday and ended with Real Madrid beating Liverpool with a score of 1:0. Before the game, the French police fired tear gas at fans of Liverpool who were trying to break into the Stade de France stadium. The match started with a 37-minute delay due to security concerns.
"The tickets were made in paper form at the request of the Liverpool club. All 22,000 British tickets were made of paper, which contributed to massive industrial fraud. According to preliminary estimates, 70% of the tickets turned out to be fake," Darmanin told a briefing.
Earlier on Monday, French sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera blamed Liverpool's fans and the Union of European Football Associations' (UEFA) decision to distribute hard copies of tickets for the unrest during the game on Saturday. She added that 30,000-40,000 British fans came to the stadium either ticketless or with fake tickets.
So far, 105 fans have been arrested, according to the French police.
The prosecution of the Bobigny commune near Paris has launched an investigation into the "mass fraud" in regard to the sale of fake tickets to the game, French newspaper Parisien reported, citing a source in the country's judicial system. The move was requested by Paris Police Chief Didier Lalman.
UEFA also announced that "it has commissioned an independent report into the events surrounding the UEFA Champions League final in Paris," adding that "the comprehensive review will examine decision making, responsibility and behaviors of all entities involved in the final," according to a statement published on UEFA's website.
Tiago Brandao Rodrigues, a member of the Portuguese Parliament, was appointed to lead UEFA's investigation. UEFA also noted that Rodrigues will be executing this task on a pro bono basis, or without payment, in order "to guarantee his independent status in the process." Once the investigation is completed, UEFA will make the results public and then will decide on the following steps.
The Champions League final was initially planned to be held in the Russian city of St. Petersburg; however, UEFA decided to change the location for the game due to Moscow's special military operation in Ukraine.
