Ted and Chas, the Liverpool and Manchester United fans fighting Uefa for better wheelchair access
Report and article by Granda Reports journalist Claire Hannah
Two fans from Liverpool and Manchester United have put aside club rivalries and joined joined forces to tackle Uefa over the access disabled fans are give to games in Europe, particularly in Spain and France.
United faced Barcelona at the Nou Camp on Thursday 16 February, with only five disabled fans allocated wheelchair spaces.
Under Uefa rules home clubs must make at least 5% of the total approved Uefa capacity of their stadium available exclusively to visiting supporters, in a segregated, safe area.
Manchester United received an allocation of 4,200 tickets high on the third tier, which is in accordance with Uefa's rules.
But the fans in wheelchairs were given only five tickets and had to sit with the home fans.
Chas Banks MBE, secretary of the Manchester United Disabled Supporters' Association (MUDSA) shared a photo with ITV news and said: "This is what it was like in 1999 when we went to the Champions league final, except we had thousands of United fans standing up in front of us and dozens of flags hanging down from above us.
"It was like watching the game through a letterbox, here we are 24 years later and nothing has changed."
Chas told ITV news in England, football stadiums have "got it" but in some countries it is like the "Stone Age."
He made these points about the Nou Camp and the Europa League game against Manchester United in February 2023.
Not enough places offered
The ones that are offered are in the wrong places.i.e. the home end
No seat for a carer
The view is awful
Barcelona will not provide a free carer place, so United pay for the carer’s ticket (This is common throughout Europe)
There is no dedicated Accessible toilet; the only place is a corner of the gents toilet that has been sectioned off.
Barcelona refuse to provide and ambulant disabled (AKA Easy Access) places at all, let alone a carer place for them. So they have to be taken out of the general allocation, with United paying for the carer ticket. This practice is common throughout Europe.
Chas said "How do they get away with it? Simple, Uefa allow them to because they don’t care enough about disabled fans."
At the other end of the M62, Ted Morris, secretary of the Liverpool Disabled Supporters Association is fighting the same battle.
The Reds face Real Madrid at the Bernabeu on 16 March, but fans have been given 1,800 tickets, which is just over half the number expected, and wheelchair users have been allocated just four tickets, in the home end.
Ted has accused Uefa of showing "contempt" for disabled fans after Real refused to increase that allocation.
The stadium is undergoing renovation works and has a reduced capacity of 70,000 but Ted Morris, secretary of the Liverpool Disabled Supporters’ Association, has told ITV Granada that is no excuse.
Ted said: "It’s not just wrong, it is in breach of Uefa’s own ticket regulations, which clearly state home clubs must make at least five per cent of the total approved Uefa capacity of the stadium available exclusively to visiting supporters in a segregated area.
"The woefully short four bays they have given us are with the home fans.
"How can that be deemed as being safe? Uefa go on about exclusion but when it comes to disabled supporters this is exclusion, whatever way you look at it.
"It has shown contempt for disabled football supporters, not just for Liverpool but every club."
Ted was at last year's Champions League final in Paris, and is hoping the independent report which said Uefa bears "primary responsibility" for the chaotic scenes there will lead to improvements for disabled fans traveling to games in Europe.
Fans were penned in and teargassed outside Paris's Stade de France as kick-off was delayed by 36 minutes and the report said it was "remarkable no one lost their life".
Recommendations were made to Uefa to improve provision for fans in wheelchairs at matches, and although these are only recommendations Ted is hopeful this will lead to Liverpool being allocated more tickets for fans in wheelchairs for the game at Real Madrid in March.
He said: "I'm always hopeful, I have hope in my heart, I'm a Liverpool fan."
In a statement to ITV Granada, Uefa said "Standards for disabled fans provision vary greatly from country to country.
"Specific allocations are decided by the host club subject to infrastructure and safety considerations.
"Teams are encouraged to exchange and agree on the needs on a match-by-match basis taking into account the facilities available.
"UEFA understands the concerns being expressed by fan groups and is working to see what can be done to give disabled fans better and more predictable provision across Europe in UEFA competitions."
Specifically on the allocation for Liverpool fans at the game at Real Madrid UEFA said:
"Throughout the extensive refurbishment works at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid, the availability of tickets for away supporters has been limited as a result of a decision of the competent police authority.
"Uefa officials travelled to Madrid in mid December 2022 to meet with representatives from Real Madrid CF and the Madrid police to try to ensure a return to the level stipulated by the Champions League regulations, so that Liverpool FC could receive the required 5% of the available capacity of the stadium as an allocation for its supporters.
"During that meeting, the police commander was adamant that the police would not, under any circumstances, agree to an allocation exceeding 1'800 tickets (2.9% of capacity out of 5%) in the present stadium condition.
"The decision was made on the grounds of public safety, as a result of the extensive building works on site relating to the stadium refurbishment.
"While we regret this situation, Uefa has no authority to impose its regulations on local police forces, who are solely responsible for ensuring public order and security.
"It is worth noting that this is not the first decision of this kind and that, from time to time, restrictive decisions are made by competent authorities limiting or banning the attendance of visiting fans."
Chas Banks MBE has been a prominent part of MUDSA for 25 years and was awarded an MBE in King Charles Honours list for services to people with disabilities in Greater Manchester and North West England.
The award recognise his contribution to improving the experience of disabled Manchester United supporters, and his work with Manchester United Foundation in supporting people with disabilities in the local community.
Chas said he was "thrilled" to receive the honour and "it was an amazing surprise when I was informed.
"There has been huge progress made in the way disabled fans are treated at football games and I’m proud of the role MUDSA continues to play in that ongoing process, particularly at Old Trafford.
"It’s a great honour personally, but really this is for everyone who has been part of building MUDSA into the biggest and best disabled supporters’ organisation in football.
"That wouldn’t have been possible without the support of Manchester United, my wife and carer Shirley, the MUDSA committee, and all our loyal members."