I’ve been asked to contribute a monthly column focusing on the clubs in the Manchester region. The idea is to discuss each club’s modern day activities while bringing in a bit of historical context. Today’s feature is on the Champions League final and UEFA’s organisational skills.

The 2022-23 football season ended with Manchester City celebrating winning the treble of FA Cup, Premier League and Champions League. This is a remarkable achievement and, with United’s treble in 1999 and City’s domestic treble in 2019, Manchester has two clubs that have produced incredible triumphs that no other English city or club has managed. We need to celebrate our region’s football and ensure the rest of England sees Manchester as the country’s football capital.

As well as celebrating though it is important to look at the things that have not gone well and I, like thousands of other Mancunians, suffered significant difficulties at the Champions League final in Istanbul. Don’t misunderstand me – Istanbul, the people, the atmosphere and the camaraderie with Inter Milan supporters was fantastic – this needs to be stressed over and over again. The rival fans were supportive of each other. What wasn’t fantastic though was the chaotic organisation that UEFA was responsible for.

Most of the people attending the final had been to prominent games before. We’ve all experienced poor organisation and had difficulties at times but this was different. This was Europe’s showpiece game and UEFA have been staging finals like this for almost seventy years. It should have been a well organised celebration of football.

I’m old enough to remember how we felt in the 1980s and well remember fans of City, United, Everton and Liverpool all working together to fight for supporter rights

The venue had been selected several years ago and should have staged the final in 2020. Covid put a stop to that, but when that deadly virus halted competition in 2020 the stadium should already have been ready – or at least the infrastructure should have been close to completion.

Three years on that infrastructure should definitely have been ready but it clearly was not. How UEFA could be happy with their selection I don’t know. For example, we had the frankly bizarre journeys to and from the stadium that caused so much pain to many. UEFA told City fans not to use public transport or taxis and to use the coaches they would be providing. Avoid the Metro system we were told and go to the fan park at Yenikapi in Istanbul to be transported by coach to the stadium.

2023 07 05 Uefa Final Organisation — **The buses to the stadium** Image: Rob Ball

Enormous queues built up for the UEFA buses with some fans waiting several hours. Water was taken from us at a security checkpoint before we were able to board and none was available on the buses. The journey from there to the stadium should’ve taken about 1 hour but my bus took about 2 hours and, as bad as that journey was, it was not the worst by any stretch of the imagination.

On my bus were some fans who told me they had been traveling for several hours on UEFA coaches from one airport (SAW) to the fan park to then board this second bus and stand for another couple of hours without access to a drink (or food) of any sort during that time.

Our bus tried to reverse on the motorway because the driver missed his turning and he kept getting lost – not once or twice but every few minutes. I’ve heard lots of similar reports from people on other buses.

The coach park was full of rubble and was impossible for anyone in a wheelchair or with mobility issues to move around on. After the game this area was where the majority of problems occurred. Buses were not at the places we were told they would be and they were parked all over the coach park in a giant traffic jam.

2023 07 05 Uefa Final Organisation Body Rob Ball Image Copy 2 — **Queuing into the stadium** Image: Rob Ball

Picture the widest motorway you know and then imagine buses all squashed in, cutting in to each other, all haphazard and thousands of supporters from young children to elderly fans squashed in between those buses desperately trying to find one that wasn’t full. Stuck there too for several hours in some cases. It was absolute chaos.

There were many other issues that I could talk about but I haven’t got the space or time to list them all. UEFA absolutely must carry out a proper review of it all with significant fan consultation but for me some of the points that must not be overlooked are the following:

- There was a final held there in 2005 which had some of the same issues, plus this final should have been in 2020, which means that UEFA either knew there would be issues but didn’t resolve them or they thought they had resolved them. They should explain their actions and why this happened this year.

- The messaging from UEFA which told City fans not to use the Metro (then there were the confused messages from officials and the authorities afterwards turning people away, saying it was closed when it wasn’t), taxis or public transport and to use UEFA’s buses. UEFA have since been reported as saying they did not say this but fans, including myself, still have their messages which say don’t use the Metro etc.

- Had it not been for the great behaviour of both City and Inter fans there could easily have been a disastrous situation. It was bad enough and I’ve heard that some with mobility issues did end up needing medical attention, but fans looked after each other and did not add to the problems. The 2022 final at Paris had significant issues and it had been reported that UEFA had said they had learned from that but here we are a year later with further issues that could and should have been avoided. If UEFA felt the venue, facilities and logistics were suitable how did it all go wrong? If they didn’t think they were suitable then why did they hold the final there?

2023 05 25 Manc Fa Cup Final Ethiad — **Ethiad stadium has the facilities and transport sorely lacking at the Yenikapi stadium** Image: Confidentials

I’m not one of those fans who believes governing bodies are always to blame, nor am I someone who moans about every little incident and so please believe me when I say that UEFA’s organisation for this final was some way below par and put many, many fans in danger whether that be because of something as simple as water not being available or that the post-match conditions were so poor that lives were put at risk – that’s not an exaggeration! Buses started pushing for every centimetre they could regardless of who was in their way as they were desperate to get on the road away from the stadium.

Sadly, I could go on for some time outlining what went wrong but what’s actually needed is for UEFA to talk with fans to understand our concerns and for supporters of all clubs to start supporting each other at times like these.

I’m old enough to remember how we felt in the 1980s and well remember fans of City, United, Everton and Liverpool all working together to fight for supporter rights. We campaigned together and challenged thinking but nowadays the tribal nature of football seems to be promoted and encouraged. This means that when one set of fans experience something negative rivals laugh at them publicly on social media or criticise instead of the support we used to give each other.

City fans have been protesting against UEFA for over a decade with protests beginning because of inconsistencies regarding punishments for racism – there are a whole series of reasons why City fans have booed the Champions League anthem over the years. I’ve written the reasons why fans boo in one of my books, so I won’t go into it all now, but it’s often incorrectly put across by rivals and some in the media that this started because City fans were unhappy with Financial Fair Play. That’s not true and it predates that.

I wish rival fans would support each other instead of ridiculing complaints because it means football’s governing bodies do not get challenged in the way that would benefit all fans. One set of fans complaining can be brushed aside but if all fans stood together they have to listen.

Let’s hope that the next final organised by UEFA has no issues and that the governing body listens to us all in the future.

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