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Wembley security yesterday

Something I raised earlier in the tournament was the pathetic security arrangements. After the shambles of last night, quite frankly... we do not deserve to host a home tournament in this country  until the security at Wembley is giving a complete overhaul.

When we went to Russia, you had private security,  Fifa volunteers, the police and the military all carrying out proper ticket/person checks on everyone at certain checkpoints. It all went very quickly and without fuss.

The scenes yesterday at Wembley were truly ridiculous, from how easy it was for people to get into the stadium for free to random fights breaking out between stewards and fans. What's the point in collecting the caps now when you can just waltz in un-challenged? It was good to see some honest England fans challenging these free loaders but it shouldn't be their job.

The current security arrangements are not fit for purpose. Something needs to happen.

128 Replies

  • Eric Everest
    The stewarding and controls were quite frankly joke. Whoever was responsible should be falling on their sword today.

    The stewards at the entrance at the back of the stadium doing the Covid checks were so ineffectual and had given up. Lots of the scumbags just briefly flashed a text message to the stewards and were waved through unchallenged. Then the stewards doing the ticket scan were swamped and the rogues just waltzed past them. The next problem area was at the turnstiles where they were trying to tailgate through the turnstiles as people went through. I saw several stopped at this point by the people with valid tickets. I pushed one of the pond life away as he tried to sneak in with me.

    I will use words like scumbags and pond life as that's what they are. They are not England fans.
  • Graham Morrison

    In reply to Matthew Isle:

    Russia had big fences All around the stadiums ( Volgograd and Nihzny ) can’t rememember much about Moscow this time but 2007 the side we went in had a big mound with armed police etc no one was bunking in there .
    The first entrance was through the turnstiles then you had to go through the 2nd set after more checks
    Should we build perimeter fences around wembley as a first barrier ?
  • Graham Morrison

    In reply to Matthew Isle:

    Also Matt you’ll remember the security from 2006 in Germany was pretty good or those 50000 to 100000 English over there would’ve been trying to bunk in
  • Peter Sherwood

    In reply to Graham Morrison:

    It was a shambles, one chap tried to "chug" in behind my mate, before being ejected and trying again! There was little or no bag search as there was so much chaos going on. And don't get me started about the Covid-check - I could have shown them a cat picture and they'd let me in.

    Fans seemed to getting in through non-existent barrier areas and generally running riot around the turnstiles. The stewards were of the "temporary" sort, looking for a few days pay for hopefully an easy day's money. There was no check to the tunnel entrance either and it had a very give-up approach to things.

    Russia had big fences, but also lots of riot police (the sort with masks and batons) and there would have been no way on Earth breaches could have happened if we'd had something similar in place. Chuck in a few angry big police dogs for good measure.

    A disgraceful shambles.
  • Robert Barr

    In reply to Graham Morrison:

    Wembley isn’t a football stadium. It’s an event stadium which is surrounded by retails shops and hotels. Not a chance they would allow anything like that to be built. As I’m under 30 and support a rubbish club side that was probably the first big game I had ever been too. Apparently, bunking is common practice for big English side when they have big matches.
  • Graham Morrison

    In reply to Peter Sherwood:

    Russia had big fences, but also lots of riot police (the sort with masks and batons) and there would have been no way on Earth breaches could have happened if we'd had something similar in place. Chuck in a few angry big police dogs for good measure.

    Exactly , I think that is the future after this and this also explains why it is not securities fault but the fault of uefa for thinking stewards could do the polices job
  • Gordon Hill
    Agree with all of the comments on this thread. We attended the Germany game, semi final and the final yesterday.

    It was obvious as soon as caught the underground that there were alot of drunk d*** heads heading to Wembley who hadn’t gor tickets. When we arrived at Wembley Parkway, the atmosphere was different, and quite moody - not the celebratory atmosphere we expected. It was clear to me that most there hadn’t got tickets for the game, and had just gone to Wembley to get p***ed up and cause a bit of mayhem.

    As the atmosphere wasn’t great, we decided to go into the stadium at around 6pm. To me, the whole layout of the Covid check area and tickets checks was inadequate, and could have been alot better layed out and organised with more space and holding areas to allow proper checks to be carried out. When we were queuing for the Covid checks, it was clear from the conversations and telephone conversations that about half of those queuing to get in had not got tickets. Many seemed to have a photo of a ticket, and had clearly got through the Covid check stage, and ticket stage at previous games, leaving only the turnstiles between them and the stadium.

    I also think the stewarding and policing were completely inadequate. Once we were in the stadium, there were lots in the stairways who clearly didn’t have tickets.

    All in all, very disappointing for a blue chip event of this magnitude. Wembley, UEFA and the FA need to have a good look at what went wrong and address these issues going forward.

    For us, the best game was the Germany game. Proper fans, and a great atmosphere.

    The above said, we’ve loved the tournament, and it’s been a great journey over the last few weeks. We were over the moon to get tickets to 3 games, considering all of our tickets were cancelled. Proud of the team - onwards and upwards !
  • Giorgio Pin
    Yeah....total disgrace. I arrived at 5pm - Wembley Way was a sty. One twat fell over. He was so drunk he couldn't get up again. It is a wonder no one was killed yesterday. That would have been curtains for English football. No chance of 2030 World Cup coming here now. Not sure I would want it.
  • Russell Osborne
    Felt embarrassed to be English yesterday. Came out of Wembley Park station just before 6pm and looked down upon a scene I'd never seen before, a packed Wembley Way, with people coming back and forth. Getting off the platform was bad enough, that was poorly managed, people getting stuck there as there was no one way system.

    Wembley Way, full of people wanting to soak up the atmosphere if they didn't have a ticket, which under normal circumstances I'd have no issue with, but then it quickly became apparent, there was a feeling in the air, the smashed glass all over the floor was disgraceful, clearly people had just been smashing for the 'fun' of it.

    Previous games, as a group, we'd stopped for a can from one of the shops, to take in the atmosphere, we quickly knocked that on the head with view to having one inside and getting through the checkpoints, which as everyone has previously said was a disaster. In hindsight, as many have said, Wembley way should only have been for ticket holders only, much like previous overseas tournaments, a ring of steel policed correctly - if only.

    Outside the ground, we saw people climbing over the walls at the west end of the ground, some were getting through, others pushed back by stewards, only to try their luck again. Just as I approached my gate, a youth, charged at the turn style that a woman was just about to enter, he literally squeezed in behind her and rushed through, as I said to the steward who was there, did you not see him there, he shrugged. I then got through, where I'm told to empty my pockets just as someone else rushes through, we both look at the runner, security then asks me if I have anything in my other pockets - farcical.

    I didn't witness the storming of the gate, but I was near it, and saw a few fly past, knocking people over and beer in the air, one knuckle-dragger ran into the toilets followed by security and was dragged out. I witnessed a few distressed children with equally distressed parents, I was just glad that my daughter has expressed no interest in going, I felt on edge there last night and the last thing I'd want to be doing was looking after her in a powder-keg like Wembley.

    I always thought that we had the capabiitys to host a large tournament, what with the stadiums across the country and infrastructure between them all (when it works), but it's clear we don't have the know-how to police it, or the people to appreciate it and as much as I enjoy a tournament, I think I prefer a couple of days in a random European city where 3 points contributes to us getting to a tournament.
  • Alan Sutton

    In reply to Russell Osborne:

    We do have the ability. It is just that proper security and organisation (preferably the army, second choice the police) costs money, so as they don't want to pay, the operation is oursourced to someone who keeps the costs down by taking on local stewards at £10 an hour and gives them minimal training.

    You could see the same issue with that idiot who ran on the pitch. The stewards couldn't catch him because they were all so unfit, and only two or three of them made the effort anyway. He was even taunting them to catch him, and there was not a policeman in sight. The stewarding is really just for show and to tick boxes, nothing else
  • Brian Crofts

    In reply to Nigel Pond:

    Nigel, most of those points are irrelevant. Changing the pricing or ticketing arrangements would not have affected whether or not thousands of ticketless yobs turned up.
  • Phillip Toone
    Slightly off topic, but still a security issue.
    Yesterday during the end of the 2nd half/beginning of extra time, a air horn was produced and constantly used. When the idiot was bored he decided to throw it from the top tier ( 510) into the bottom tier, with stewards not far behind him, at derby county, and prob most other grounds someone is monitoring cctv, if someone at pride park sets off a smoke bomb, within 5 minutes they are located and removed, this drunken idiot was just left there laughing.

    That gas cannister could of caused someone big damage.
  • Gordon Taylor

    In reply to Robert Barr:

    'Apparently, bunking is common practice for big English side when they have big matches'

    When we (Spurs) were there for 18 months people were jibbing in every home game. Wembley is well known as one of the easiest grounds for it.

    After the number of people who jibbed the Denmark game and the fact there was an article about it in an actual daily newspaper I was expecting security to be tighter last night when in fact it was non existent.
  • Michelle Nelson
    I was at the euro final yesterday
    It took me nearly an hour to get in due to having issues with getting my ticket activated .
    Once I had found my seat I was informed from that there were 5 young lads lads in the seats next to who were bragging amounts themselfs that they had no tickets where a guy with his 2 kids who were supposed to be sat next to met had to watch the game by standing up on the steps .I paid nearly 300 quid for My ticket as been following england fro over 20 years.
    Explained my situation to the stewards who replied not my problem .
    I was late getting back to my seat after half time as was pushed into the barrier and kneed in my back by a thug as I got in his way again no support from the stewards had to get back to my seat on my own
  • Lynne Ogden
    I absolutely agree with everything that has been said about last night from the carnage on Wembley way to the 60,000 crowd!!!!
    Minding my own business I got hit by a cone and have a nasty bruise on my arm, I was avoiding beer cans like they were hand grenades!!!!
    The police presence was practically non existent!! It was a beer fuelled riot, so where were the police?
    Onto access to the game, I had easy access tickets, so had to go in via CW. 1 poor steward looking at people’s tickets to let you through!!! Then the checks, bring in the flares but god forbid you have a lid on your bottle!!!
    Now the seats!!! We got in at 6 and made sure we had ours, many had to share!!
    On the way to the ladies I practically got knocked over by a freeloader, my prompt actions got him caught by a steward!!
    Security at Wembley needs a serious overhaul!!
    All in all irrelevant of the score, not Wembley’s finest hour!!!
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