Senator Laurent Lafon (UDI), president of the culture committee, spoke on Wednesday July 13 “a chain of dysfunctions” to explain the incidents that occurred at the Stade de France during the Champions League final on May 28.
He mentioned in particular “failures”, as well “in execution” that in the ” preparation “ of the sporting event. “Everyone was in their lane without there being any real coordination”also pointed out the senator during a press briefing organized to present the senatorial report on this evening of fiasco.
The analysis made by the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, who had blamed this failure on the massive presence of counterfeit banknotes held by English supporters, “wasn’t the right one”denounced Mr. Lafon. “It was a partial and imprecise analysis”he said. “The first statements did not correspond to the truth”also denounced François-Noël Buffet (LR), president of the law commission.
Senator Michel Savin (LR) denounced in a press release “the attitude of the Minister of the Interior” during the hearings which, according to him, “will not have allowed our commission to fully understand what happened”.
The Senate report recommends about fifteen measures, including those of“impose on operators” keep CCTV footage “for the legal duration of one month” or even of “Make the use of tamper-proof banknotes mandatory”. For Mr. Lafon, if “the management of the ticket office was unsuitable”elle “can in no way be considered as the sole cause or as the cause of the incidents”.
“Serious damage to the image of France”
Spectators without tickets climbing the gates of the stadium, others with tickets but unable to enter, families sprayed with tear gas by the police or thefts and assaults committed by opportunistic criminals… It was to be a showcase for a little more than one year from the Rugby World Cup and before the Summer Olympics in two years, but the May 28 match between Real Madrid and Liverpool turned into a nightmare.
Among the people auditioned by the senators since 1is June: officials of sports bodies, representatives of Liverpool supporters and the French authorities, including the controversial Paris police chief, Didier Lallement, whose departure is announced for July 20, and Gérald Darmanin.
The latter had affirmed, against most of the observers on the spot, that very many English supporters had presented themselves “without ticket or with falsified tickets”. His explanations had also been challenged by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), which only counted 2,600 counterfeit tickets at the turnstiles. Pressed by critics, the minister ended up recognizing at the end of June “a share of responsibility” in the failures of the evening and reiterated its « excuses » to supporters.
Beyond the police management of the incidents, the controversy has also been fueled by the non-conservation of part of the CCTV images of the Stade de France, qualified as ” serious misconduct “ by Francois-Noel Buffet.
In parallel with the work of the Senate, the interministerial delegate for the Olympic Games and major events, Michel Cadot, pinpointed as of June 10, in a first report submitted to the Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, the “failures” the organization and the police response to the incidents which, according to him, brought “serious damage to the image of France”.
Without waiting for the verdict of the senators, Mme Borne has already instructed the interior and sports ministers to “implement without delay” the recommendations of the Cadot report.