Russian vlogger ‘spurred on’ Wembley Champions League chaos as he 'offered pitch invaders £260,000' to pull off stunt

2 June 2024, 15:26

Wembley was hit by chaos leading to more than 50 arrests on Saturday evening after pitch invaders were reportedly offered £260,000 to disrupt the Champions League final.

Individuals were seen rushing the plush Club Wembley entrances at the stadium in North London before Borussia Dortmund faced off against Real Madrid in football's biggest club game.

Shocking footage from outside the ground showed mayhem as people jumped over security fences and pushed through ticket gates.

Met Police confirmed their officers made 56 arrests around the Champions League final.

The FA later confirmed that no “ticketless” individuals managed to get into the venue amid the chaos.

After the ugly scenes outside the ground, the start of the game was also marred when three pitch invaders entered the playing field.

The three fans were hauled off by security and the game was restarted - with one stopping to take a selfie with Madrid star and goalscorer Vinicius Jr.

The pitch invaders were seen wearing t-shirts with the word ‘Mellstroy’ on them, the name of a Moscow-based vlogger who has previously been convicted of abusing a model during a YouTube livestream.

Now it has been reported that the vlogger may have spurred on the Wembley chaos, as the vlogger, real name Andrey Burim, posted a video on Telegram in February saying: “If you run onto the field in the final of the Champions League with the Mellstroy logo on your body, you will receive 30,000,000 rubles [£260,000].”

The force originally announced 53 arrests but in an update on Sunday, the Met said the total had gone up slightly, with the vast majority remaining in custody.

Most of the arrests were made for attempts to breach security but five were made after people got onto the grass.

Saturday's game, between Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid, had just kicked off when play was disrupted.

The Football Association invested £5 million in improving safety, security and infrastructure at Wembley in the wake of the trouble at the Euro 2020 final, when ticketless fans stormed the gates to gain access to the stadium.

In a statement on its website, a spokesman said: "Wembley Stadium has echoed its commitment to clamp down on poor fan behaviour as it prepares to host a record-breaking eighth Uefa Champions League Final on Saturday June 1.

"Wembley Stadium has implemented several enhancements to its security and safety operations at recent events.

"It includes more stewards, additional ticket checks, improved fencing, new security lanes and increased enforcement of the Public Space Protection Order which exists around the stadium on event days.

"All of the changes will be in operation again on Saturday as the stadium prepares to welcome a sell-out crowd for the final between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund."

A spokesperson for Met said at the time: "We are confident that the overwhelming majority of attempts to unlawfully gain access to Wembley this evening were unsuccessful thanks to the efforts of officers, stewards and other stadium staff.

"Officers have made 53 arrests at Wembley tonight - five for pitch invasion and the majority of others for attempts to breach security.

"Major sporting events often attract attempts by those without tickets to bypass perimeter fencing or otherwise gain entry. There is a robust policing operation in place to support the Wembley security plan and officers have worked closely with stewards and stadium staff to maintain security throughout.

"Videos shared online showing groups running into entrances do not necessarily represent successful attempts to enter the stadium. There are typically multiple further levels of security beyond an initial entrance.

"Officers remain in the area outside the stadium and will deal decisively with any criminality."

The security breaches came after the FA boasted of a £5million "ring of steel" which was supposed to prevent a repeat of the massive problems of England's EURO final defeat to Italy in July 2021.

The FA and UEFA were also seeking to stop a similar situation to the 2022 Champions League final at the Stade de France in Paris.

At the game between Liverpool and Real Madrid, thousands of Liverpool fans were stuck outside and congestion resulted in a non-fatal crush.

Congestion had reached dangerous levels, and the police's response was to indiscriminately pepper spray and tear gas supporters.

Among them were children who were pressed up against the railings in an attempt to relieve pressure on the turnstiles.

Both UEFA and French authorities initially tried blaming the chaos on Liverpool fans, who will be all too aware of the false accusations thrown their way after the 1989 Hillsborough disaster.

France’s interior minister, Gerald Darmanin, claimed "30,000 to 40,000 Liverpool fans" had forged or no tickets, alleging there had been an "industrial scale" ticket fraud.

French ministers had talked of Liverpool supporters as having been a major hooligan threat, contrary to the Merseyside Police intelligence.

It later emerged police had acted on a misconceived view of the Hillsborough disaster and believed it meant they had to have riot police in force.

However, an independent report into the potentially life-threatening incident, leaked on Monday, said there was “no evidence” to support the “reprehensible” claims.

The findings of the report, commissioned by UEFA after the final, concluded that as the “event owner”, the footballing body “bears primary responsibility for failures which almost led to disaster”.