Wembley chaos at Euro 2020 final declared "day of national shame" in review

An independent report into England fan disorder at the Euro 2020 final has described the event as a "near miss" that could have led to deaths and life-changing injuries on a "day of national shame".

The findings from Lady Louise Casey's 129-page document were released on Friday and highlighted that 2,000 ticketless fans gained entry to Wembley for the final between England and Italy in July.

It underlined how there were 17 mass breaches of disabled access gates and emergency fire doors, and while the report primarily blamed "a horde of ticketless, drunken and drugged up thugs", there was also blame for the FA and the police, who were slow to react to unfolding events.

Italy triumphed in a dramatic penalty shootout victory over the Three Lions but events away from the pitch and surrounding the stadium were described "an appalling scene of disorder."

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The review also proposed that an England victory would have created a "further huge public safety risk" with up to 6,000 people planning to storm the stadium at full-time to celebrate as the gates opened to allow ticket-holders to leave.

The 17 security breaches were when crowds charged through disabled entrances, with only 400 - less than a quarter - of ticketless fans who gained entry ejected by security.

Casey acknowledges how services had been depleted by the pandemic but officials did not recognise the significance of the match nor did they carry out due diligence on the potential risks.

The reports demands a new level of event labelled "national significance" which would demand suitable resources and attention while also calling for great clarity over responsibility for security on Wembley Way, where many fans were openly consuming alcohol and taking drugs.

Casey wrote: "The Euro 2020 final was a potentially glorious national occasion that turned into a day of national shame.

"Our team of role models were in our first major final for 55 years.

"However they were let down by a horde of ticketless, drunken and drugged-up thugs who chose to abuse innocent, vulnerable and disabled people, as well as police officers, volunteers and Wembley staff, creating an appalling scene of disorder and coming perilously close to putting lives at risk.

"I am clear that the primary responsibility for what went wrong at Wembley that day lies with those who lost control of their own behaviour that day, not with anyone who did their best but lost control of the crowd.

"Nevertheless there are always lessons to be learned and it is right and commendable that the FA have commissioned this thorough review and have fully engaged with it, along with key partners including the Police and local council.

"No one was fully prepared for what happened that day and it can't be allowed to happen again."

Football Association chief executive Mark Bullingham responded that "no event is set up to deal with such disgraceful behaviour from thousands of ticketless fans," but Bullingham did "for the terrible experience that many suffered within Wembley on what should have been a historic night."

Bullingham added: "We fully accept the report's findings and there are important learnings for us, as well as other agencies involved.

"Collectively we must never allow this to happen again.

"The lessons learned from this review will ensure that fans have a good experience at major international events at Wembley, as they have for many years."

A No. 10 spokesman said of the findings: "The violent scenes we saw in the lead-up to that final were unacceptable and we condemn them in the strongest possible terms.

"Baroness Casey's report rightly identifies that the responsibility for the reckless and criminal behaviour we saw is with a small minority of individuals who sought to ruin the day for the overwhelming majority of genuine football fans."

The spokesman said the government will now study the report and "we will ensure any lessons are learned."

England have been ordered to play one match behind closed doors and the FA fined £84,560 by European football governing body UEFA as punishment for the unrest.

It is believed that the events caused irreparable damage to England's hopes of hosting the 2030 World Cup.