Chaos at The Cottage
This morning I wrote to Fulham Football Club to express my anger and disappointment at the organisation of last night’s friendly international between Ghana and Brazil. The ticketing system and the non-existent crowd control so badly needed outside of the ground shortly before kick-off were nothing short of ludicrous.
I attended the match with a friend and had placed an order online on Saturday. We arrived at the ground on the Johnny Haynes stand side to collect our tickets over an hour prior to kick off. We were directed by a steward to the two tiny white ticket collection booths close to the statue of Johnny Haynes where we found a huge crowd of people pushing and shoving to collect their pre-booked tickets. We queued for half an hour to get to the front and collect our tickets, during which time, no organisation or crowd control took place at all and the crowds continued to grow.
As we reached the front, I showed my proof of purchase email, complete with order reference number and gave my surname and address as requested. However, my tickets were not there. I was directed to a young girl standing alone who was holding a huge pile of tickets with the surname starting with ‘P’. She had no security with her to ensure the tickets went to the correct person or even, in fact, someone who had paid. She rifled through this pile of tickets and could not locate my tickets. She summoned her supervisor who simply directed me to queue at the ticket office.
At this point, as my friend joined the queue I made the first of several complaints on what I had hoped would be an extremely enjoyable evening.
Why exactly, I have asked Fulham, had I been directed to join a queue in which people were standing who had not taken the time, or indeed paid the £1.25 booking fee per ticket, to order online? What exactly was the point of me purchasing tickets in advance to queue with people who simply turned up on the night?
I was told by two of the staff that lots of people were in the same situation and I just had to be patient and queue like everyone else.
Not accepting this I found another, far more accommodating steward who took me to his supervisor, a very courteous and apologetic lady who was controlling the flow of cash-payers at the ticket office door. By this time however, my friend had been queueing for another 20 minutes in the cash queue whilst I ran around like a blue-arsed fly.
I was then finally directed to the ticket enquiries window at which point, after a further 20 minutes of queueing (this is now over an hour of queueing I would like to stress) the young lady in the enquiries printed me off fresh tickets and – I thought – we were good to go.
We then tried to get to the Putney End gates.
With the queueing of people at the ticket collection booths, people trying to get to their turnstiles with only a few minutes to go until kick off and people simply moving in all directions, we were trapped – I do not use that word lightly – trapped in a throng of what appeared to be hundreds, if not thousands of people. People were falling over, a man in a wheelchair was being jostled, a young girl in front of me was separated from her parents and was in tears and I was being pushed from behind, as was pretty much everyone in my immediate vicinity. Where were the police, the stewards; where was the direction, the announcements of directions or information? Where was the crowd control?
We managed to get out of this dangerous throng of people essentially by shoving and forcing our way through. I am absolutely stunned that no-one was seriously hurt during what was a horrible crush. This was by far the worst overcrowding I have seen in nearly twenty years of attending football matches and no-one, not the police, nor the club, were taking any measures to resolve or help the situation.
I shouted to a female mounted police officer who was stationed directly in line with the Haynes statue that there was a crush going on “down there” indicating the direction and said that someone was going to get hurt. I was blanked. Not even any recognition of my comment. Nothing. I said the same to a young steward also and, to his credit, he ran in that direction and I could hear him shouting directions and telling people not to push. On his own.
Why was their no support for this young man? Why were the police more concerned with telling people, and I quote – “Come on, head to the gates, yes it’s busy but maybe you should have got here earlier”?
As we headed into the ground the crowd was swelling further behind us and still, nothing was being done.
As we approached the gates, I discovered to my indignation that tickets were being sold, for cash, at the turnstiles. What kind of organisation is this? We were stood for another 10 minutes behind people buying their tickets, asking where the seats were and paying cash and getting change etc, whilst all we needed to do was scan our barcodes and go through! How many places were there available to sell cash tickets and why were people with pre-booked tickets forced to (yet again) queue with individuals who had not pre-booked online and paid an administration charge? Is this not basic crowd control to separate and move quickly those with tickets, then control the larger cash paying masses? This and the chaos at the ticket collection booths was certainly contributing to the swelling crowds.
Finally, with around five minutes to go until kick off we had got into the ground, we ran to our seats only to find a young lady in one the two seats I had booked. I said to her that I thought she was in my seat, to which she replied “I don’t think so” and produced a ticket identical to my own, for the exact same seat.
I complained to the stewards in the left-hand corner of the Putney End, informing them of the issue and a supervising steward was called, an extremely helpful gentlemen who was hugely embarrassed by the situation. He took my ticket number and promised to report the problem. Another of the stewards said to me that this was not the first instance of this happening tonight and he was also very sorry. Exactly how many other seats had been sold multiple times? I ended up being seated, away from my friend, in a seat with a far more restricted view.
Was this seat sold twice? Was her ticket in fact my ticket that the ticket collection point could not find? I have asked how had this been purchased – by cash from the club? If so why did they feel they could sell this seat to both her and I? If not purchased from the club, was it purchased from a tout and if so how did this ticket end up in the hands of [said] tout?
I have insisted on clarification to the questions I have asked above, as well as asking if this is how Fulham Football Club usually handle normal Premier League matches? If it is not how they would handle a normal match, why was the organisation of Monday night’s game allowed to get so completely out of hand? Finally, I want to know what steps will the club will be taking to ensure that such a debacle is not repeated? If club’s are to be awarded with such lucrative friendlies, surely they have some obligation to ensure that such negligence never again rears its ugly head?
I have requested a response from the club before the end of this working week. If I have not heard from them by this time however, I will be contacting the Football Supporters Federation for advice on where to take my complaint next, be it the FA, the Premier League, or whoever.
There are some positives I would like to highlight however. The Fulham stewards, as a team, were outstanding. They were helpful, courteous, apologetic and without them, Monday night could have gone from being a debacle to something far worse. Another was the fantastic attitude of, and atmosphere created by, the Ghana fans. With such shocking organisation and ridiculously poor planning, with another, more aggressive group of fans, the outcome could have been drastically different in the stands yesterday night. Thankfully for everyone, the Ghanaian fans just wanted to sing and dance.
The stewards were a credit to the club, and the Ghana fans a credit to themselves.
However the organisation of the evening should leave everyone involved deeply ashamed.
If you had a similar experience on Monday night at The Cottage, please add a comment and let us know. This is as much about public safety as anything else and the club should be made to answer for their actions, or lack thereof.
UPDATE: You can see Fulham’s response here – http://bit.ly/qQ9RQ3
Posted on 06/09/2011, in 1. Latest and tagged Brazil, chaos, craven cottage, debacle, fulham, Ghana, overcrowding, police, tickets. Bookmark the permalink. 38 Comments.
Added my account here… very similar:
http://benjilanyado.wordpress.com/2011/09/06/an-open-letter-to-fulham-fc/
Copy of an email I sent to Alistair Macintosh, CEO @ Fulham this morning:
Dear Alistair
I attended yesterday’s game between Brazil v Ghana at Craven Cottage, and I am very unhappy that due to a complete lack of organisation and stewarding by the club I was unable to enter the ground until 35 minutes into the match, despite having arrived at the ground 40 minutes prior to kick off.
I was sitting in the Johnny Haynes stand (I have attached a copy of my receipt as proof of purchase) and it was impossible to gain access to the ground due to the number of people gathered in the area. There was no organisation in terms of stewarding, no barriers had been put in to divide people try to collect tickets and those that had arrived and were trying to get into the ground (such as myself). To make things worse, it was the first game of football that I had taken my girlfriend to – what should have been an exciting experience for her ended up being extremely stressful and upsetting.
I have been to numerous football grounds at all levels, from non-league to Premier League, and last night was by far the most disorganised I have ever attended, frankly all involved should be embarrassed. I would appreciate a refund of my tickets, or alternatively tickets to another match so that I can try and prove to my girlfriend that attending football matches in this country can be a pleasant experience.
Best wishes
David
Almost identical. Eventually sat down about 35/40 minutes into the first half. Saw a chap leave the collections queue as he was rightly worried for his son’s safety – not sure he ever got in. A steward I passed was explaining that this was “the busiest night for collections in the club’s history”, as if that had taken everyone by surprise. Had to eject someone from our seats when we got in (though they were in the wrong place, probably down to knock-on effects of the kind of double-booking you describe).
Quite right about the Ghana fans – we were sat with them and the atmosphere and music were fantastic.
I had exactly the same problem last season when I bought tickets for the Fulham vs Blackburn game. I actually ended up getting a full compensation although I was unable to get into the ground. Will not be going to Craven Cottage anytime soon after that experience!
I work for the company that performs the over the phone sales service for Fulham FC.
The sales for the final few days before the game, a period where tickets could no longer be posted out and would go for collection, was really busy. Busier than the whole previous work before. It was clear to me, and so should’ve been clear to the club, that an above average amount of people would be collecting tickets on the night. It was also not sold-out, so there was also going to be a large number of people walking up to buy tickets on the night.
Sorry to hear about your troubles collecting tickets. It just seems as if Fulham didn’t realise they needed increased staff levels, when anyone monitoring the tickets sales could’ve told them otherwise.
Have just seen the Fulham response in the Evening Standard (http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard-sport/football/article-23984289-fulham-tell-crushed-fans-ticket-chaos-not-our-fault.do), which is absolutely disgraceful. Of course people without tickets were going to turn up when they were told that there were tickets available to buy at the door. I got there about 6, queued for around 45 minutes to buy tickets, and we decided to go in early to get to our seats, thankfully. We were at the Hammersmith end, and throughout the first half there were people coming into the stand, and not getting to their seats. Some people even resorted to sitting on the steps. Hopefully lessons have been learnt and this situation won’t happen again, although I frankly hold no hope considering the common sense on show last night
Hello, I’m Amanda Jacks, caseworker for the Football Supporters’ Federation and I’d be pleased to hear directly from those effected last night. All reports received in confidence and we’ll do what we can to ensure proper answers are received from those responsible for the crowd management. Amanda.Jacks@fsf.org.uk
My experience was similar. A friend had booked 6 tickets and when we arrived at 7:15 at the stadium we were all crushed in the queue along with some young children. I was scared for my own safety and particularly that of the smaller members of the group.
After 20minutes, we managed to move away from the crowd leaving our friend to unsuccessfully attempt to pick up the tickets. An hour later he was told we would be let in at the turnstyles if we showed proof of purchases.
The steward told us that this was not the case and sent us to the reception who promptly informed us that this area was for corporate bookings only. At 8:20 we gave up.
I am appalled that Fulham are refusing to accept responsibility: There were very few stewards, little (and late arriving) police presence and not enough people distributing tickets. The accusation that the crowd are to blame as they were late and ticketless is false.
NOTE: Splitting the two ticket booths from A-L and M-Z would be more effective if you separate the two booths.
The whole experience reminded me why I tend to not go to football matches anymore.
I wasn’t there last night as I’m currently abroad but I’m a Fulham fan who attends the Cottage regularly. While I haven’t witnessed anything quite as chaotic as what you describe, I do remember that during our last Europa Cup run similar things happened before kick off prior to some of the bigger matches. I think it was the Juventus game, where there was an early goal so fan were pushing to get in quickly, where I was caught in a crush as the entire road was rammed with people right up to the wall opposite the Hammersmith End entrance. For a few moments I was struggling to breathe and, while it didn’t last long enough for there to be any injuries or serious panic, I did think at the time it was mismanaged and perhaps a disaster waiting to happen. It sounds like it was worse last night. Thankfully there were no injuries and now perhaps this outcry will force the club to have a rethink.
My email to Fulham this morning (I’m a Fulham season ticket holder by the way)
Hi,
Name : David
Client Reference : *****
Postcode : **** ***
I purchased 8 tickets in total to Brazil vs Ghana this evening. I got 7 at the start of last week which were delivered and 1 that I had to collect. Upon arrival I was unable to get anywhere near the ticket collection point, and I was also stopped by stewards / police along with many other fans, so I wasn’t able to get near the ticket collection point until around 7.55 (10 minutes after kick off). I then waited for an extra 30 minutes and the crowds still hadn’t gone, in which time people were getting very angry therefore making the wait even longer by not queuing correctly. By this time I thought it was just better to purchase a ticket on the gate and sit with my friends (who were already in the ground actually watching the game). I eventually got into the stadium with 40 minutes of the first half gone, and having left the ticket I paid £25 for at the ticket collection as the queue was so big.
So somehow due to the lack of organisation I managed to miss 40 minutes of the football match, not collect a ticket I had paid for, and paid for a ticket on the gate which I didn’t need to get as I had already paid for one.
Being a loyal fan of Fulham and managing to assemble another 7 people to go to ground I go to every other week, this is one of the most disappointing evenings at Craven Cottage I could have wished for. I didn’t collect a ticket I paid for and my friends were left wondering why they had bothered to come as I wasn’t near them for half the match. Apart from that I missed Brazil playing, something every football fans would love to see.
As I paid twice for a ticket ,one of which I didn’t even collect due to the lack of organisation I can assume you’re going to refund this money to my account? If you need proof I didn’t collect your ticket it will still be in the collection point.
I look forward to hearing form you on this matter.
Kind regards
David
Chaos at Brazil v Ghana game, 5 September, 2011
Likewise, we also wrote to Fulham about our deeply unpleasant experience on an evening we wished nothing but good entertainment (see below). After quite long and literally suffocating experience trying to reach the ticket office, we were so concerned and frustrated that we decided to return home without. And yes, we travelled to London (1h on a train to Waterloo plus more than 20 min on the tube) to watch the match!
I was wondering to which email addresses did you send your letters? I could only find the general enquiries one and would love to re-send the letter to a more ‘personalised’ address. I also filled a comment on the Met Police website of Hammersmith and Fulham Borough, as they are the ones responsible to control the crowd.
______________________________________________________________________
Our letter to Fulham:
Excited with the prospect of a good entertainment, on 5 September 2011 we headed to Craven Cottage to watch Brazil v Ghana. We arrived at around 7 pm and asked one of the stewards identified by a bright colour vest where we should collect our tickets. We were told that we should go straight to the turnstiles with our on-line confirmation of ticket purchase (he pointed to entrance number 38). We headed there and were told that we needed to collect our tickets from the ticket office. We asked another steward where to go and were again directed to one of the entrances. After three attempts, this proved to be unfounded and instead we were directed to two small booths approximately mid-way between entrances for opposing fans.
Trying to reach the ticket office, we ended up experiencing one of the most unpleasant and frightened situations, certainly one that we do not expect in an evening that was supposed to be about entertainment. My wife and I were crushed by an agitated crowd of fans wishing to either get their tickets or enter the ground in both directions. It was impossible to reach the ticket booths or the agglomeration of people queuing in front of them, we were just gridlocked and had to move along with the mass. After 15 long and extremely stressful minutes, when it seemed possible that the crush of people would become seriously life threatening, we emerged at Ellerby Street. Shortly after we found a less crowded area and wondering what to do, the police took charge of the chaos and sensibly prevented further people entering the ticketing area. We waited in front of the police line until about 8:10 (well way into the first half of the game), but there was still no foreseeable possibility of obtaining out tickets. With rain steadily falling, and when we saw a new wave of fans arriving, we decided to abandon the match and reluctantly began our journey back to Winchester.
Putting it simply, it was clear that Fulham FC was not well prepared to manage the event. Knowing the number of fans arriving to collect their tickets, it should be easy to foresee that: (a) Stevenage Road is very narrow to accommodate the number of fans arriving to collect their tickets, (b) the ticket booths could not be placed in worse location than mid-way through the congested entrance areas (shouldn’t they be in an area of easy reach of arriving fans?), (c) only two booths attended by only one staff each was less than understaffed to serve the number of fans. I am sure you are aware of the situation as a number of complaints have been posted on the discussion forum at the Fulham FC website.
We now expect the following action:
· a full refund for the tickets (Order reference 562589099 placed on 02 September 2011 11:05 at a total cost of £52.50) and compensation for the wasted journey to London (£36 each);
· an apology for the total mismanagement of the ticket collection; and
· a statement about how international matches will be handled in the future to avoid a repeat of the situation last night.
With regards to the safety of the public I have sent a copy of this letter to the Metropolitan Police (Hammersmith and Fulham Borough). I believe it was more luck than judgement that a serious incident did not occur outside the ground yesterday evening.
I note also that the match we attended between Brazil and Scotland at the Emirates stadium was trouble free and we were able to collect our tickets and enter the ground without any delay or overcrowding.
Yours faithfully
Ludalua, I’d be pleased to take up your complaint as well. I work full time for the Football Supporters Federation and part of my role is to assist in complaints such as this. On this occasion, however, given the seriousness of the incident I will be putting together a report with witness accounts. I’d be pleased to hear from you at amanda.jacks@fsf.org.uk I will also pursue your request for a refund.
Did you get a response from FFC about a refund? I was told they couldn’t offer one because it wasn’t a Fulham match. The way I see it, I paid through the Fulham FC website, so regardless of who they forward that money on to, they are responsible for paying me back!
Hi Cassie,
Same thing. They said they are unable to refund. It’s a joke!
Disgraceful. And they are planning on doing the same thing on Sunday – I just received a link to half-price tickets http://www2.seetickets.com/see_multi/price.asp?code=584760&filler1=see&filler2=multisee&pgroup=all and when I click through to buy them it says “The tickets will be available for collection from the Craven Cottage Box Office shortly before the event.”
It is totally disgraceful and insulting to all funs for a FFC spokesman to deny the Club’s responsibility as reported at Evening Standard. http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard-sport/football/article-23984289-fulham-tell-crushed-fans-ticket-chaos-not-our-fault.do
Please someone let me know where to send the letter I have written for the Police and the Club’s CEO. Thank you.
Kostas, I am compiling a report to send to Fulham. If you would like to email me with your version of events, then I’ll of course include your report. I am determined to ensure that supporters who attended last night get the answers they deserve. My email address is amanda.jacks@fsf.org.uk
I posted my comments earlier but just to say, comparing a stadium that has 1 side situated on a river and only 1 access point (stevenage road) for all 4 stands, to compare it to a purpose built Emirates stadium is insane. Last night was unacceptable but Craven cottage is a unique football setting, but alot of that is the history around the ground, rather than the purpose built souless Emirates stadium….
Yep, similar experience for me – arrived with 45 mins to spare, got in 35 mins after kick-off. £10 of my £25 was spent being crushed. The account above is not exaggerated, it was a genuinely dangerous situation, and Fulham FC should be ashamed (although the police were not exactly faultless either).
My account here:
http://artemidorus1.tumblr.com/post/9872399886/fulham-fc-crowd-control-and-the-silence-of-twitter
(ignore the Twitter stuff, that’s work-related)
Thanks Amanda. I will e-mail you tomorrow. I have also posted a brief summary of my experience as a comment at the ES write up. http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard-sport/football/article-23984289-fulham-tell-crushed-fans-ticket-chaos-not-our-fault.do
I have also called the Fulham Police and orally launced a complained to the Borough Commander, I was called promptly just earlier by an officer named Thomas, he acknowledged that there is a lesson to be learned for both the Police – who underestimated the crowds and did not have enough staff and were slow to react – and the F.F. Club. He asked me if he could provide my name as support to recommendation report that he is writting to the head of the Police responsible for organising the force for such matches. Of course I agreed.
come on you guys. the atmosphere is everything at the cottage, and you probably could have expected things to get rowdy at an international fixture. despite the unorganized evening you at least could try have enjoyed it. smile, stop bitching
Owen you clearly weren’t in the crush. I’m a season ticket holder and have never experienced anything like that before. That wasn’t ‘atmosphere’, it wasn’t just ‘unorganized’, it was actually dangerous. Amanda I’ll drop you an email since people clearly aren’t taking this seriously and some of the club’s comments since have been astonishing.
I was in the crush too. I’m 6ft and 15 stone and I was pretty uncomfortable. There were parents with children who were very upset. In my opinion, it was only by luck that there were no serious injuries.
i had a simila exprience however did not manage to get my tickets even tough i qeued up untill after half time!!!
I agree with all of the above – disgraceful and the worst I have seen at a football ground in this country in 20 years of attending matches. It was pure luck that another Hillsborough didnt take place on Monday night. Poor stewarding and equally poor policing (it really only takes one person with a radio to contact the police control room and for a tannoy message to be made telling people that kick-off is to be delayed for 30 minutes).
Myself and a colleague simply gave up at 19:55 and went to the pub for a drink (match not on tv arrrgggghhhhh). No chance of getting the tickets and stewards not entertaining the option of using the email confirmation.
I see that the club is trying to weasel out of refunds but they have not got a leg to stand on. They cannot blame latecomers when their ticket line was still advertising tickets at the gate on Tuesday morning. They also cannot take the cowards way and blame drunk fans. It was 7pm on a Monday night in London – people had made their way from work and certainly were not drunk.
I called Fulham’s supporter relations manager and was told that an investigation was going on. It seems from their public comments since that they have asked the promoters to cough up (tricky as they are probably half way back to Rio or Accra by now and I am aware that the Brazilian FA is paid a huge appearance fee for these matches). The promoters appear to have refused and now they are doing likewise. I, for one, am contacting AMEX and asking them to chargeback the cost of the tickets
My email to Fulham FC is copied below. They offered complimentary tickets, but as I said in my email – I have no intention of ever returning to the ground again and will only accept a full and prompt refund for the 6 tickets purchased.
To whom it may concern,
[Please forward this email to the relevant office. If your ticket collection system is managed by an independent company (i.e. not directly through Fulham FC) then please forward this email to the relevant event management company and CC my email address so that I may have the appropriate contact details to follow up this email.]
I wish to make a complaint and request for a full refund for the tickets I purchased for last night’s international match at Craven Cottage (Brazil vs Ghana; details of tickets purchased can be found in the forwarded email below).
My complaints are two-fold:
a) being caused immense distress in a dangerously uncontrolled crowd, and
b) missing half the match due to the delays caused by this poor crowd management which could have so easily been avoided.
As I am sure you are well aware, the “queue” for collecting tickets last night was, at best, an absolute fiasco. I can honestly say I have never seen such poor event management in my life. Despite knowing exactly how many sets of tickets there were to be collected, the event management team (if there even was one?) planned no crowd control measures whatsoever (save for having 2 ticket ‘office/caravans’). Planning for the management of a known number of people to efficiently collect tickets is, in my view, entirely the responsibility of the venue.
Firstly, the ticket offices were woefully understaffed (and I do feel sorry for those working in such conditions – to their credit they did the best they could). Secondly, there were no barriers to structure a queue – which would have discouraged opportunistic pushing-in and avoided a ‘mass mob’ effect in which it’s every man for himself. Thirdly, there was no dedicated exit path for those who had collected their tickets, instead people were pinned to the ticket office, desperately trying to fight their way out through an impenetrable mass of people. Not to mention the fact that people buying online within a few days of the match had no other option but to collect tickets at the stadium – there was no option to print them out at home. In short, it was hard to imagine how anyone could have thought that the infrastructure in place could ever have supported such a volume of people.
I have read an article which quotes a Fulham spokesperson blaming the ‘congestion’ on people without tickets, late comers, and people not entering the stadium. I am massively incensed by this statement. The mass crush for ticket collection was: a) not simply congestion – the people in the mass were a concentrated, directed group of people that were not near the ticket barriers; b) full of people that had already purchased tickets online and were therefore EXPECTED TO BE THERE and had NO OTHER OPTION but to collect at the stadium; c) was already an uncontrolled mass at 19:00 – 45mins before kick-off – therefore those affected by the chaos were not ‘late comers’.
I arrived at the ground around 19:00 and joined the back of the mass mob (the term ‘queue’ can in no way describe it) to collect 6 tickets. Within minutes I was compressed against bodies from all sides. For the first little while it was endurable but uncomfortable and most people were well-behaved. However, after 45mins of being crushed, I texted a friend to say that I was increasingly worried about the building frustration of the crowd – if tempers frayed it could have turned into a very serious incident. As it happened, a scuffle broke out next to me and I was elbowed in the face. Being a 5′ 6”, 8st girl, I found it increasingly difficult to breathe, both from the crushing pressure of everyone around me, as well as my face being pushed into people’s bodies – and the generally body heat and humidity of the air amongst everyone was stifling.
The terrifying thing was that if I wanted to just give up on getting tickets and forfeit the match, I couldn’t even do that! There was literally no where to go, no space to move and no conceivable way out. Quite frankly, it was terrifying.
The crowd was clearly restless as the match had already started and yet there didn’t seem to be any sign of intervention from stewards or the police – no reactive crowd control measures to relieve the pressure in the crowd, or to create some semblance of order to make the process more efficient. All I heard were people shouting from the front to move back, but no one could move back if they tried! Then rumours circulated that they were refusing to hand out tickets until people moved back, which only caused more anger as we were helpless and it meant that it would take even longer to get tickets, which meant being crushed for even longer. At 20:00 I called my friend, crying, asking her to contact the police or an official to do something about the crowd as I was starting to panic about the increasing physical pressure and emotional desperation of the crowd.
I did not get my tickets until about 20:15 and it took a further 10mins to get out of the crowd (making my way through it, against the people pushing forward was probably worse than just being stuck in it), find my friends, and finally make our way into the stadium.
We saw about 5mins of the first half.
I don’t think there is any dispute that the conditions which people had to endure and the consequent distress and delay it caused were completely unacceptable.
I do not wish to be compensated with complimentary tickets, as I do not wish to visit your venue again. I ask only for a full refund of the 6 pre-purchased tickets.
Sorry to not make this more succinct, but I can’t express enough just how immensely deplorable the whole ordeal was and I never want to be forced into such a situation again.
Thank you for your time, and I hope that this incident can be used as a lesson to prevent such situations happening again.
Kind regards,
I had my ticket in my hand and only managed to get to my seat at the 38th minute. Absolute joke.
An absolute shambles – non-existent crowd control and no communication from the police. Although I got there at about 7.10, I eventually left at about 8.30 p.m. without even having managed to pick up my tickets. I expect better from a premier league club. That was a truly frightening experience, trying to reassure my 13yr old that we would be fine, remonstrating with some of the fans to stop the pushing and shoving. My son is still traumatised by his experience of almost being crushed and has said he will not attend any more games.
I will be seeking a full refund from Fulham FC for the three tickets. Interestingly enough, on my way out, I stopped to “have words” with one of the mounted female offices who said, amongst other things that Fulham had refused to police the event saying it was not required, and b) they (the police) had asked Fulham to delay the kick-off in order to calm the crowd but they had refused to.
Not sure quite who’s door this should be parked at but someone needs to be held accountable.
Re: Brazil v Ghana 5/9/2011
I was there with my young nephew. We arrived about 40 minutes before the start of the game to pick up tickets. I saw no stewards marshalling the swarm attempting to get to the two tiny boxes distributing the tickets. No police either. The first time we tried to get near my nephew was getting crushed and quite scared and we had to leave the sprawl. People ahead of us had already given up. Several times I went to Fulham stewards to seek help, pointing out that our seat details were on the internet printout, but they insisted we had to line up to get the tickets. I kept telling them someone was going to get hurt – or worse. They didn’t care and told me 2,000 people decided to come late for tickets, so this is what happens. I pointed out to them that if it takes 30 seconds per ticket distribution, two people will need to spend nearly five hours to distribute the tickets – that there was no way this was ever going to work.
Twice more I tried to get into the swarm, leaving my nephew to one side. Then the police moved in (at about 8:15 – kickoff was 7:45) and started shouting “move back” but to where? They then said we could get in on our print outs, but that turned out to be a ruse because by the time we got to our gate the stewards refused to let us in, saying it was more than their job was worth.
By now it was 8:45 or so and the second half had started. We gave up and went home. My nephew was bitterly disappointed, it would have been his first international. He was very shaken up by the whole thing, as was I. It was a total fiasco. Fulham FC should be ashamed, as should the local police, and not allowed to host such games in the future.
My nephew was bitterly disappointed, it would have been his first international. He was very shaken up by the whole thing, as was I. It was a total fiasco. Fulham FC should be ashamed, as should the local police, and not allowed to host such games in the future.
get over it. it’s football not cheese and pineapple on sticks at Auntie Ethel’s house. You moaning polly prissy pants.
Just had my money refunded by Fulham. I guess they did the right thing.
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