Disabled City fan left lying in her own urine following Champions League final chaos in Istanbul
A disabled Manchester City fan was left lying in her own urine following chaos during the Champions League final in Istanbul.
Clare Watson, who is ambulant disabled (which means those who have a disability but do not use a wheelchair), ended up breaking her femur in two places following disruption at the final last month.
Clare went to Turkey with her grandchildren for the game on 10 June, but suffered an accident as she made her way to the match, causing her to miss six weeks of work.
She described her experience as 'atrocious' after she and her grandchildren were forced out of the taxi they were using to get to the Ataturk Stadium by police because of a road closure.
After exiting the taxi, she began walking over “building site rubble” and tripped as she tried to avoid an oncoming vehicle.
She said: “It was then clear from the pain that I needed an ambulance, but they would not allow my grandchildren to come with me.
“Once at the hospital, I was told the severity of my injury and that I would need surgery.
"I was moved to another hospital for the operation the following afternoon but was ignored and received no attention for hours on end.
“Lying there in my own urine, soaking wet, was the most upsetting part of the experience.”
The disability access charity Level Playing Field (LPF) has now called for answers from UEFA over how disabled supporters were accommodated at the Ataturk Stadium in the week following the match.
However, so far the charity has received no response.
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin admitted on a visit to Manchester in June that “not everything was perfect” in Istanbul, with many supporters reporting issues with transport and access to water and toilets.
Clare's daughter is a nurse and advised her to go back to hospital when she returned to Manchester.
Clare recalled: “I went to North Manchester A&E and they could not believe I had been advised to fly home.
“I was cared for there for another week, still in pain, but with the necessary equipment and plenty of care from my daughter.
“I am now at home and unable to work, having missed the game and brought back a metal rod instead of a souvenir flag.”
LPF fan liaison officer Liam Bird said Clare's experience demonstrated “a clear lack of respect for fans” from UEFA, and that lessons had not been learned from the chaotic scenes at the 2022 final in Paris.
Wembley will host the Champions League final in 2024. Football Association chair Debbie Hewitt said last month that the staging plans would be “tested to destruction” by all the agencies involved in organising it.
Mr Bird believes Wembley will “undoubtedly provide better” but added: “This lottery of access and inclusion (based) on which year your team gets to the final cannot continue.
“UEFA need to engage with organisations with expertise in disability access and inclusion, as well as disabled supporters themselves, when planning all showpiece events.”
Football Supporters Europe is compiling a report into fans’ experiences at this year’s final which will be presented to UEFA.
UEFA has been approached for comment.