Liverpool fans plan 1,700-strong legal action against Uefa over Paris final

More than 1,700 Liverpool supporters who have reported that they suffered physical injuries or psychological trauma because of the chaos at the Champions League final in Paris on 28 May have registered with law firms to make claims for damages against Uefa.

People signing up for the potential group claims include some who reported that they sustained broken ribs in crushes at the Stade de France before the match between Liverpool and Real Madrid, and many more reporting symptoms of anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.

At the match, hosted by Uefa, the confederation of Europe’s national football associations, thousands of Liverpool supporters were directed by French police on a hazardous alternative route through a subway, leading to a narrow, bottleneck perimeter checkpoint where huge queues built up into a risk of crushing. Many turnstiles at the stadium were then closed for long periods, leading to static queues and a further crushing risk, and people were also affected by police using pepper spray and firing teargas. Uefa and the French authorities blamed Liverpool supporters for the chaos and kick-off delay.

Gerard Long, a partner at Binghams solicitors in Liverpool, said more than 1,300 people had registered their interest in a potential claim, most suffering from psychological trauma.

“We are representing people who suffered physical crushing injuries at the turnstiles, and very many people who have suffered psychologically; some were in fear of their lives,” Long said. “Clients have reported anxiety, PTSD, nightmares, never wanting to go to a European football match or even France again.

“Our case is that Uefa as the organisers had a duty of care to people – who paid a lot of money for tickets – and they