Uefa to refund Liverpool fans for tickets after Champions League final chaos

Uefa has confirmed that all 19,618 Liverpool fans who bought tickets from the club’s allocation for last May’s Champions League final are eligible for a refund after the chaos that marred the match in Paris.

On 13 February Uefa promised to open a “special refund scheme for fans” who attended the final, in response to the damning findings of the report it commissioned into the events around the Stade de France.

The report found that Uefa bears “primary responsibility” for the catastrophic organisational and safety failures that turned the final into a horrific, traumatic experience for thousands of Liverpool and Real Madrid supporters.

General admission tickets ranged from €70 to €690 and on Tuesday Uefa confirmed details of its scheme. “The special refund scheme covers all of the Liverpool FC ticket allocation for the final, ie 19,618 tickets,” Uefa said. It said it would “reimburse Liverpool FC the total value of these tickets and the club will then process the refunds to its supporters”.

Three law firms representing almost 3,000 Liverpool supporters caught up in the disorganisation have previously told Uefa that legal action will be taken unless more substantial compensation than a ticket refund is paid. They argue that the fans are entitled to compensation for their physical and psychological injuries under French law.

Some Madrid fans who bought tickets via their club and some spectators who purchased tickets from the tens of thousands available outside the club allocations will also be eligible for a refund. Uefa said those fans would need to meet its refund criteria, which were spelled out in a statement. It said the scheme was designed to cover those “most affected when accessing the Stade de France”.

“Refunds