Italy remembers Heysel disaster

UEFA president Michel Platini vowed there would never be a repeat of the Heysel stadium disaster as he attended a memorial in the northern Italian city of Turin Saturday, 25 years on.

He spoke as Belgium, Britain and Italy all held ceremonies to mark the 1985 tragedy.

During crowd trouble, 39 people, mostly Juventus fans, died when a wall collapsed as they waited to watch their team play Liverpool in the European Cup final at the stadium in Brussels. Another 600 fans were injured.

Despite the terrible scenes in the stadium, the match went ahead, the authorities deciding that to cancel it risked creating further unrest.

Former Juventus playmaker Platini, who played in that match, which went the Italians won 1-0 to lift their first European Cup, remembered the darkness that came over him.

“I was carefree like all players who were going through an important moment,” he said Saturday.

“But that match was played in darkness for us players. I still remember that match today and I can’t forget it.

“As president of UEFA I guarantee that it will be one of my priorities to ensure such a tragedy never happens again.”

In Britain, bells rang out in Liverpool on Saturday to mark the anniversary of the disaster.

Thirty-nine chimes sounded out at the city’s town hall in memory of the victims and flags at all Liverpool FC’s buildings were flown at half-mast as a mark of respect.

The club’s managing director Christian Purslow attended the memorial service in Turin, the home city of Juventus, along with families of the victims.

New Juventus president Andrea Agnelli also spoke of his memories of the event.

“I was a nine-year-old child and I was in front of the television and saw my parents’ worried expressions but I didn’t understand and they couldn’t explain it to me,” he said.

“Since I’ve grown up my understanding has matured. I’ve always struggled to feel our victory in that Cup, even if the players assured me it was a real game.

“Now we have to ensure that future generations have secure stadiums so that football can be enjoyed in serenity and joy.”

English teams were banned from Europe for five years as a result of the tragedy, with Liverpool barred for an extra season.

Despite criticism of UEFA and the Belgian Football Association over the condition of the ageing stadium and the ticketing allocation, no official inquiry was ever held.

Heysel stadium was demolished in 1994 and the King Baudouin Stadium was built on the site. It too hosted a brief commemoration ceremony on Saturday, the Belga news agency reported.

A statue in memory of the victims of the disaster stands outside the stadium.

After a five-month trial in Belgium in 1989, 14 Liverpool fans were given three-year sentences for involuntary manslaughter.

English teams were banned from Europe for five years as a result of the tragedy with Liverpool being barred for an extra season.