According to an independent report, Uefa bears “primary responsibility” for the chaotic scenes that “almost led to disaster” before last year’s Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid.
As kickoff was delayed by 36 minutes, fans were gathered and teargassed outside Paris’ Stade de France.
Initially, Uefa and French authorities blamed “industrial-scale” ticket fraud, which drew widespread criticism.
According to the report, there is “no evidence” to back up the “reprehensible” claims.
“The panel has concluded that Uefa, as event owner, bears primary responsibility for failures that nearly led to disaster,” according to the report, which was commissioned by Uefa following the final on May 28.
While it said there was “contributory fault” from other bodies, the findings said European governing body Uefa was “at the wheel”.
“Uefa should have retained a monitoring and oversight role [of security] to ensure that everything worked properly. It obviously did not, “the report went on to say.
Uefa commissioned the independent report three days after the match in Paris, the showpiece of European club football that Liverpool went on to lose 1-0.
The European governing body stated that a “comprehensive review” would be conducted to look into a variety of factors, including decision-making, responsibility, and behavior of all parties involved in the final.
Dr Tiago Brandao Rodrigues, a Portuguese politician, presided over the investigation, which included experts and consultants from the legal, policing, and event-management fields, as well as representatives from football fan groups.
“On behalf of Uefa, I would like to sincerely apologize once more to all those who were affected by the events that unfolded on what should have been a celebration at the pinnacle of the club season,” said Uefa general secretary Theodore Theodoridis.