French minister blames Liverpool fans for initial problems at Champions League final

France's sports minister said on Monday that Liverpool fans without valid tickets were responsible for initial crowd control problems at the Champions League final, with problem exacerbated later by local youths trying to force their way in to the game.

Some French far-right politicians, such as Eric Zemmour, said the crowd trouble at Saturday's Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid was caused principally by local youths from the nearby Saint-Denis Paris suburb.

"What we really have to bear in mind is that what happened, first of all, was this mass gathering of the British supporters of the Liverpool club, without tickets, or with fake tickets," French sports minister Amelie Oudea-Castera said.

"When there are that many people by the entrance to the stadium, there will be people trying to force their way in through the doors of the Stade de France, and a certain number of youths from the nearby area who were present tried to get in by mixing in with the crowd," she told French radio RTL.

The match kicked off with a 35-minute delay after police tried to hold back people attempting to force their way into the stadium without tickets, while some ticket holders complained they were not let in.

Television footage showed images of young men, who did not appear to be wearing the red Liverpool jerseys, jumping the gates of the stadium and running away. Other people outside, including children, were tear-gassed by riot police.

Chris Philp, Britain's minister for technology, said he was shocked by the images.

Thousands of Liverpool supporters in a fan zone in Paris, ahead of the Champions League Final at the Stade de France against Real Madrid. PA

"I was horrified to see those pictures of fans including