About 25,000 fans for each team were at the Hysel Stadium an hour before kick-off when violence erupted. The retaining wall separating the supporters collapsed. This was described as “the darkest hour in the history of the UEFA competitions.”

As a result of the tragedy, UEFA banned English clubs from engaging in European competitions for 5 years. An Italian reporter from Gazzetta dello Sport who was there on May 29, 1985 describes the Belgian police units as completely useless. It became very clear with 15 – 20 minutes before that a very dangerous situation was developing.

Many other people that were there are amazed how crystal clear the events of that night have stayed in their memory. Despite the disaster, the game continued in order to avoid even more violence. A penalty scored by Michel Platini brought the victory to Juventus. However, the previous shock was too high and the celebration was overshadowed by so many negative feelings.

A plaque was unveiled on Wednesday at Liverpool’s Anfield stadium to remember the 39 victims. On Friday a moment of silence was observed at the city hall. The bells were rung once for each of the victims.

Image Credit: