 "Policemen on horses stand guard outside the Wembley Stadium prior to the FA Cup final between Manchester City and Manchester United. AP")
England’s Football Association (FA) said it had invested £5 million ($7 million) in improving safety and infrastructure at the iconic Wembley Stadium in an attempt to prevent a repeat of the violence that struck the Euro 2020 showpiece. Wembley in London will host this weekend’s UEFA Champions League final between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund.
An independent review identified more than 20 “near-misses” that could have led to serious injuries or death after ticketless individuals tried to gain entry, and in some cases succeeding, for the England vs Italy match in July 2021.
There was also trouble at venues for the 2022 and 2023 Champions League finals, in Paris and Istanbul.
The officials have promised a “robust and comprehensive testing plan” for digital ticketing and safety checks.
Chris Bryant, the English FA’s director of tournaments and events, said: “We are doing all we can to ensure fans have a smooth arrival process and nice experience as they come to the stadium.”
How has Wembley prepared for the Champions League final?
The English FA has tested new methods at the League Cup and FA Cup finals. It said fans would be able to enter Wembley four hours before kick-off on Saturday, rather than two, with Transport for London (TfL) running extra services to help manage the flow of fans to and from the venue.
Chris Bryant acknowledged that, following the COVID-19 pandemic, the supply of stewards was a major issue at the Euro 2020 final. However, they insisted that the Champions League final would see “the highest ever stewarding deployment in Wembley Stadium history”.
“One thing in the Euros final was very much the supply of stewarding, which I can say was at a low point off the back of Covid,” he said. “We’re very confident the supply of stewarding which you’ve seen in the industry has bounced back.”
He added: “We’ve increased the strength of all the doors because at the Euros final people tried to rip the doors. Those doors are locked with a magnetic lock system and we’ve put a further lock system on every door around the stadium.
“We never foresaw events like that for the Euros final and I’m not sure we will again but we’ve learned lessons and additional measures have been implemented.”