European Cup Final

[kopite]

Manchester United and Chelsea fans will be forced to go to Moscow 'gulags'

"Manchester United and Chelsea fans travelling to Moscow for the Champions League final will be sent to special 'gulags' to prevent them from fighting with each other.

Fans will be ferried from the airport to the special holding pens near the stadium, which will have just one entrance, be guarded by armed Moscow police and will not sell alcohol.

They could remain there for up to eight hours. Once inside, fans will be told not to leave if they want to see the game.

The policy will stop many fans from seeing anything of the Russian capital's famous bars and clubs.

They will go from the airport to the holding camps, then to the game, before taking a bus back for their return flight.

Police chief Major Igor Konovalov said: 'It's a normal practice. We use them in our country and the fans call them “settling tanks”. It doesn't matter who comes here — even a bunch of penguins — if our laws are violated we'll take full measures allowed by our law to clamp down. We will not differentiate.'

Russian authorities say they are expecting more than 40,000 fans to travel to Moscow in 300 separate flights. "

Link

Uefa are an absolute disgrace. they have learnt nothing from past f*** ups. glad were not going now. over a 1000 uk for flights and a ticket, and then you have to stay in a holding pen for up to 8 hours, f*** that. no ale, no taking over a square. <deleted>.

i predict a riot

Edited May 9, 2008 by kopite

[nev]

i saw that mate they should have had in place that if 2 english sides made the final it would be played at wemberly.

[kopite]

great post from a liverpool website

Let's start with a UEFA statement taken from their website:

"UEFA has been working tirelessly in recent years within the campaign to ensure that football matches are a pleasure to attend for the game’s enthusiasts and protagonists"

I may not be going to Moscow in a few weeks time, but if I was, my idea of this match being "a pleasure to attend" seems to be somewhat different to that of UEFA and the Russian Authorities.

In their mission statement, they also state this, as one of their responsibilities to the game. To...

"Promote positive sporting values, including fair play and anti-racism, as well as safe and secure match environments."

Now, safe and secure match environments? Athens hosted last year's final, one I attended. A ground chosen to host the European Cup Final. The same venue that was described by a senior UEFA official as "not a ground designed for football". It was an athletics stadium, not designed to cope with 70,000 fans arriving in a short period of time. It was designed for athletics fans to come and go, to roam freely around the open land around the stadium and come and go throughout the day. A completely different set up than that required for football matches. The stadium didn't even have turnstiles. So much for providing safe and secure match environments, and especially at UEFA's Flagship event of the year.

As for the racism stance. The same UEFA that fined entire nations pathetic five figure sums as a punishment for racist abuse at games? The Zenit St.Petersberg manager came out only yesterday, stating that he is not allowed to sign any black players, the fans and club wouldn't allow it. This side are in the UEFA Cup final. What are you going to do about that UEFA?

UEFA are going to allow United and Chelsea fans to be picked up at the airports in Moscow and held in "Gulags" all day, before being driven to the ground in prison style buses, some as early as 4 or 5 hours before the game. Then depending on flight times, some will be held in the ground after the game for up to 6 hours while they gradually let fans out. "A pleasure to attend for the game's enthusiasts...".

Gulag - "the Gulag system has become primarily known as a place for political prisoners and as a mechanism for repressing political opposition to the Soviet state".

Or football fans it seems.

Fans travelling on organised trips to Moscow, being forced to pay a minimum of £900 just to get there, only to be treated like a prisoner throughout their stay, purely for being a football fan. How do you plan to manage and control the thousands of other fans UEFA that have booked flights independently and will be roaming around Moscow and surrounding areas for days?

I suppose you'll all be ok though in your 5 star hotels and being driven to the game in luxury. Close the curtains and ignore what's going on outside. Why should you care after all? Not as if you're meant to have the best interests of the game and the treatment of fans as part of your mission statement is it?

"UEFA has been working tirelessly in recent years within the campaign to ensure that football matches are a pleasure to attend for the game’s enthusiasts and protagonists"

Don't make me laugh.

[nev]

great post could not agree more.

[mrtoad]

great post from a liverpool website

Let's start with a UEFA statement taken from their website:

"UEFA has been working tirelessly in recent years within the campaign to ensure that football matches are a pleasure to attend for the game’s enthusiasts and protagonists"

I may not be going to Moscow in a few weeks time, but if I was, my idea of this match being "a pleasure to attend" seems to be somewhat different to that of UEFA and the Russian Authorities.

In their mission statement, they also state this, as one of their responsibilities to the game. To...

"Promote positive sporting values, including fair play and anti-racism, as well as safe and secure match environments."

Now, safe and secure match environments? Athens hosted last year's final, one I attended. A ground chosen to host the European Cup Final. The same venue that was described by a senior UEFA official as "not a ground designed for football". It was an athletics stadium, not designed to cope with 70,000 fans arriving in a short period of time. It was designed for athletics fans to come and go, to roam freely around the open land around the stadium and come and go throughout the day. A completely different set up than that required for football matches. The stadium didn't even have turnstiles. So much for providing safe and secure match environments, and especially at UEFA's Flagship event of the year.

As for the racism stance. The same UEFA that fined entire nations pathetic five figure sums as a punishment for racist abuse at games? The Zenit St.Petersberg manager came out only yesterday, stating that he is not allowed to sign any black players, the fans and club wouldn't allow it. This side are in the UEFA Cup final. What are you going to do about that UEFA?

UEFA are going to allow United and Chelsea fans to be picked up at the airports in Moscow and held in "Gulags" all day, before being driven to the ground in prison style buses, some as early as 4 or 5 hours before the game. Then depending on flight times, some will be held in the ground after the game for up to 6 hours while they gradually let fans out. "A pleasure to attend for the game's enthusiasts...".

Gulag - "the Gulag system has become primarily known as a place for political prisoners and as a mechanism for repressing political opposition to the Soviet state".

Or football fans it seems.

Fans travelling on organised trips to Moscow, being forced to pay a minimum of £900 just to get there, only to be treated like a prisoner throughout their stay, purely for being a football fan. How do you plan to manage and control the thousands of other fans UEFA that have booked flights independently and will be roaming around Moscow and surrounding areas for days?

I suppose you'll all be ok though in your 5 star hotels and being driven to the game in luxury. Close the curtains and ignore what's going on outside. Why should you care after all? Not as if you're meant to have the best interests of the game and the treatment of fans as part of your mission statement is it?

"UEFA has been working tirelessly in recent years within the campaign to ensure that football matches are a pleasure to attend for the game’s enthusiasts and protagonists"

Don't make me laugh.

A perfect post, from a proper football fan, regardless of what team they support.

Post of the month IMO in the football forum.

I'll even buy you a beer the next time you're in BKK. Respect!

[colino]

But at least the Russian government has relaxed the visa rules for English fans ,,,

Unlike the Chinese for the 2008 Games

And i have read also that a UK tour company has hired a cruise ship that will act as an hotel for 2-3 days as up to 50.000 fans need rooms (the visa requirement is a valid ticket for the match and a valid hotel booking and a return flight ticket)

[mrtoad]

But at least the Russian government has relaxed the visa rules for English fans ,,,

Unlike the Chinese for the 2008 Games

And i have read also that a UK tour company has hired a cruise ship that will act as an hotel for 2-3 days as up to 50.000 fans need rooms (the visa requirement is a valid ticket for the match and a valid hotel booking and a return flight ticket)

Sorry Colino, are you trying to justify the total farce that this "political" Final is?

[colino]

But at least the Russian government has relaxed the visa rules for English fans ,,,

Unlike the Chinese for the 2008 Games

And i have read also that a UK tour company has hired a cruise ship that will act as an hotel for 2-3 days as up to 50.000 fans need rooms (the visa requirement is a valid ticket for the match and a valid hotel booking and a return flight ticket)

Sorry Colino, are you trying to justify the total farce that this "political" Final is?

Hi mrtoad

sorry no im not trying to justify anything just wanted to point out that the russians have made it easy to go watch the football , thats all. No offence intended to any one

[mrtoad]

But at least the Russian government has relaxed the visa rules for English fans ,,,

Unlike the Chinese for the 2008 Games

And i have read also that a UK tour company has hired a cruise ship that will act as an hotel for 2-3 days as up to 50.000 fans need rooms (the visa requirement is a valid ticket for the match and a valid hotel booking and a return flight ticket)

Sorry Colino, are you trying to justify the total farce that this "political" Final is?

Hi mrtoad

sorry no im not trying to justify anything just wanted to point out that the russians have made it easy to go watch the football , thats all. No offence intended to any one

No problem mate, it still seems like a farce to me though, with all the "Gulag" <deleted> going on. Stinks of a UEFA stich up IMO. They can't wait to get rid of the EPL sides.

[kopite]

No problem mate, it still seems like a farce to me though, with all the "Gulag" <deleted> going on. Stinks of a UEFA stich up IMO. They can't wait to get rid of the EPL sides.

last year was no diffenrent, and istanbul. the airports were a f***ing nightmare, people missing flights, no refreshments, waiting for upto 12 hours for flight. no turnstiles into the ground. bottlenecks organised by police to filter fans into the ground (lots of lads who were there in 89 just simply broke down). the squares in the daytime organised by UEFA had no toilets.

UEFA dont care, were animals. yet italian fans, east european, french are worse than we ever were and nothing happens. no ban, no action.

UEFA are a joke. dont be surprised to be called the worst fans in europe a few days after the final

[bartmag]

agree with everything you've wrote kopite, uefa are a disgrace.

One comment did make me laugh though, "glad were not going now" - yeah right !!!!

[kopite]

agree with everything you've wrote kopite, uefa are a disgrace.

One comment did make me laugh though, "glad were not going now" - yeah right !!!!

"glad were not going now" as in me and me mate.

dont fancy spending all day without any ale, getting battered by russian police batons. also i wonder if the rest of uk football fans will still believe william gallard when he calls manc or chelsea fans the worst in europe.

its coming, brace yourselves

[bartmag]

I know its different for you lot, won it so many times, been to this amount of finals, but if Newcastle were in the Champions League Final (dont laugh too loud) i would go a month without ale and the Russian copper could gladly stick his truncheon where the sun dont shine [