European football’s governing body, UEFA, has requested England’s High Court to dismiss lawsuits initiated by over 1,000 Liverpool fans who attended the 2022 Champions League final in Paris.
The fans allege personal injuries resulting from the chaos outside the stadium.
The lawsuits against UEFA and UEFA Events, filed last year, stem from the disorder outside the Stade de France before the match, which was delayed for over 30 minutes.
Videos showed French police using tear gas on fans, who claimed mistreatment as they were directed into pens outside the stadium.
An independent review of the incidents outside the stadium concluded that UEFA bore responsibility for numerous near misses that nearly led to a disaster before the final, won 1-0 by Real Madrid.
While UEFA settled with a group of Liverpool fans in March, a separate case involving approximately 1,200 others is ongoing at the High Court.
During a preliminary hearing, UEFA’s legal team requested an adjournment of a forthcoming hearing, during which UEFA will seek the dismissal of the cases.
UEFA’s lawyer, Shaheed Fatima, said in court documents that the case could not continue because it would require the court “to make findings as to the lawfulness or unlawfulness… of the French state.”
Judge Edward Pepperall has ruled that the hearing regarding UEFA’s application to dismiss the cases will proceed on June 27.
Initially, UEFA attributed the chaos to the fans of the Merseyside club before issuing an apology following the release of an independent review last year.
Subsequently, UEFA established a refund scheme, but Real Madrid deemed it inadequate and refused to participate.
Additionally, UEFA initiated a series of measures for future finals, such as augmenting the number of security personnel and engaging fans in the planning and execution processes.