Many football supporters dream of traveling abroad to watch their club compete against Europe’s elite teams, sharing the experience with friends and family. However, these European away trips are not always filled with sunshine, sangria, and singalongs. In recent years, several major security incidents have put fan safety at risk.
The 2022 Champions League final was described as a “near mass fatality catastrophe” due to poor organization by Uefa and French authorities. Since then, fans of Manchester City, Manchester United, and Newcastle have strongly criticized policing and security measures at matches in Istanbul, Lyon, and Marseille, respectively. Earlier this season, some fans were even banned from attending certain away matches in the Champions League due to “extremely worrying” security trends, which some believe are worsening, stripping fans of dignity and, in some cases, creating dangerous situations.
Common complaints from fans include overly aggressive policing, crushing caused by poorly managed stadium entry and exit procedures, lack of toilet access, invasive body searches, and confiscation of items like power banks and medications. So, are safety conditions at some of the game’s most prestigious matches really getting worse?
‘Lives are being put at risk’
“There are definitely countries where the situation is deteriorating, like Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands,” said Ronan Evain, executive director of Football Supporters Europe (FSE). FSE invites traveling fans to complete a survey about their experiences after each round of European fixtures. “There are also repeat offenders—countries and clubs where things are not improving, and they have demonstrated that they are not capable of hosting games in acceptable conditions. France, Spain, Portugal, and Italy are major tourist destinations that are very used to hosting people from all over the world, but clearly treat football fans completely differently—like a threat or second-tier citizen.”
Security arrangements and policing strategies for European matches are developed through a combination of host clubs, national governments, local authorities, and regional police forces, with input from Uefa. The treatment of fans can vary drastically depending on the venue, the policies of the country or city, the behavior of home fans, and the context of the game. Furthermore, not every fan has the same experience even on the same trip.
“There are some things that are small humiliations—being forced to enter a stadium four hours before kickoff, put on a bus for hours with no toilet, having lip balm taken off you,” Evain said. “These things are rarely necessary, and are either a way for the police to exert a form of social control, or just completely outdated. Then we see things like pushing thousands of fans through gates no bigger than an apartment door—there are clearly policing strategies and infrastructural failures that are putting people’s lives at risk. It just takes a few people to panic for things to go really wrong.”
How do European away trips play out?
BBC Sport asked experienced European away fans to document how English clubs’ trips unfolded during the last two Champions League and Europa League matchweeks, selecting a range of games in different locations with varied policing and security approaches.
Gemma Manns, 44, a Chelsea fan in Naples, Italy: “We avoided arriving in Naples until the afternoon of the game, based on Napoli fans’ reputation for hostility. Hearing about the two young guys who were stabbed was horrible but not surprising. In the end we didn’t see any trouble around the ground once we got to Naples, and the checks were all efficient. We were kept behind for over an hour after the game, and big groups of ultras stayed in their stand to try to intimidate us, so we felt at risk. Once we headed towards the…”
