UEFA to refund Liverpool tickets after final fiasco
Liverpool supporters will have its UEFA Champions League final tickets refunded in full by UEFA following the chaos that marred last May's showpiece in Paris.
An independent report released last month held UEFA "primarily responsible" for the "large number of near misses that nearly led to disaster" at the Stade de France.
Liverpool fans were originally blamed by authorities amid shambolic scenes that saw tear gas used by police and others crushed in dangerous bottlenecks outside the ground.
Having accepted blame for a catalogue of organisational failures ahead of Liverpool's 1-0 loss to Real Madrid, UEFA has now agreed to refund all 19,618 Liverpool ticket holders.
UEFA general secretary Theodore Theodoridis said: "We have taken into account a huge number of views expressed both publicly and privately, and we believe we have devised a scheme that is comprehensive and fair.
"We value the input from the Liverpool FC supporter organisations Spirit of Shankly and Liverpool Disabled Supporters Association as well as the open and transparent dialogue throughout this period.
"We recognise the negative experiences of those supporters on the day and with this scheme we will refund fans who had bought tickets and who were the most affected by the difficulties in accessing the stadium."
The final, won by Vinicius Junior's 59th-minute strike, was delayed by 38 minutes due to the crowd issues outside the venue.
A large number of supporters with genuine tickets were refused entry because of faulty scanning devices, with many accused of possessing fake tickets.
In a joint statement released on Tuesday, Spirit of Shankly and the Liverpool Disabled Supporters Association said: "We welcome today's announcement from UEFA.
"This unprecedented move is the result of tireless work, alongside FSE [Football Supporters Europe] and Ian Byrne MP, to hold those responsible for the catastrophic events in Paris.
"With a promise to reimburse supporters, UEFA have gone some way to acknowledging their part in the fiasco.
"But it does not excuse UEFA, exempt them from criticism or lessen the need for them to implement all of the recommendations made by the independent inquiry.
"We will work alongside Liverpool and publish details once we know how and when refunds will be processed."
The cost of refunding nearly 20,000 supporters is expected to be in the region of £3million (€3.4m), according to reports.
