Fans descend on stadium ahead of Champions League final in Istanbul
- 10 months ago
UEFA are labelled 'a shambles' after MORE Champions League final chaos in Istanbul - with Man City and Inter Milan fans forced to contend with a fire, five-mile walks and huge queues
UEFA was labelled 'a shambles' once again as fans faced chaos, a fire and five mile walks amid miles of stranded cars to get to a heavily-policed Ataturk Olympic stadium, in Istanbul.
Videos of desperate Manchester City supporters walking and jogging along the motorway to the stadium were being shared on social media as traffic congestion raised fears thousands would miss kick off and the biggest club match in world football would be delayed.
Taxi drivers were charging £130 for a normal £10 fare from downtown Istanbul to the stadium as UEFA advised fans to get to the match at least four hours before kick-off, yet avoid using the dangerously overwhelmed Metro service.
Instead, they were directed to official UEFA shuttle buses. Queues of over two hours were reported to get on the vehicles, which started leaving the city centre nine hours before the match was due to start at 10pm local time.
Many coaches, like the over-priced taxis, were brought to a standstill by traffic. That forced them to drop fans on the roadside to make the majority of the journey on foot. in baking heat, and take their chances walking through the erratic flow of motorway traffic.
Supporters experienced more bottlenecks around the stadium amid strict security checks amid fears ticketless fans were trying to gain access.
More large queues formed to get through two levels of police checks outside the stadium metro station and the approaches to the ground as tickets were checked and bags searched for alcohol.
UEFA was labelled 'a shambles' once again as fans faced chaos, a fire and five mile walks amid miles of stranded cars to get to a heavily-policed Ataturk Olympic stadium, in Istanbul.
Videos of desperate Manchester City supporters walking and jogging along the motorway to the stadium were being shared on social media as traffic congestion raised fears thousands would miss kick off and the biggest club match in world football would be delayed.
Taxi drivers were charging £130 for a normal £10 fare from downtown Istanbul to the stadium as UEFA advised fans to get to the match at least four hours before kick-off, yet avoid using the dangerously overwhelmed Metro service.
Instead, they were directed to official UEFA shuttle buses. Queues of over two hours were reported to get on the vehicles, which started leaving the city centre nine hours before the match was due to start at 10pm local time.
Many coaches, like the over-priced taxis, were brought to a standstill by traffic. That forced them to drop fans on the roadside to make the majority of the journey on foot. in baking heat, and take their chances walking through the erratic flow of motorway traffic.
Supporters experienced more bottlenecks around the stadium amid strict security checks amid fears ticketless fans were trying to gain access.
More large queues formed to get through two levels of police checks outside the stadium metro station and the approaches to the ground as tickets were checked and bags searched for alcohol.