Heysel: In Memoriam (3 Viewers)

Geof

Geof

Senior Member
#81
May 14, 2004
6,740
#81
Talks have been on since a long time of what should become of the Brussels' Stade Roi Baudouin (ex-Heysel).
The stadium (though renewed for EURO2000) is not up-to-date with UEFA requirements (no neutral zone, no business seats,....) to host European Finals, and the Belgian NT has been avoiding the place as well. Only athletics event "Ivo Van Damme Memorial" is faithful to the stadium.
As the need of something new is evident for the above reasons, but add to that, the fact that Anderlecht are trying to get a bigger stadium than they now have (Stade Constant Van Den Stock) and Belgium and The Netherlands are preparing a bid to host the 2018 WC, and you've got enough reasons to have an ambitious project.

The latest development could see the whole stadium sloped and replaced by office/living space, with the new stadium being build somewhere else.
Or, the stadium could be totally renewed... Nothing is certain yet.

I just hope they have the decency to keep the Memorial of the 1985 tragedy. I'm sure our friends from Bruxelles Bianconera will follow this closely.
 

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ReBeL

The Jackal
#82
Jan 14, 2005
22,871
#82
Ancelotti fears violence could lead to another Heysel


SOFIA (Reuters) - AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti said the recent wave of fan violence in Italian football could lead to another event like the Heysel disaster.

"To be honest, I have a feeling that the horrors of the Heysel disaster could return after all that happened over the weekend in Italy," Ancelotti was quoted as saying in Bulgarian weekly newspaper 168 Chasa on Friday.

"I've been talking so many times to Gigi Maifredi, who was Juventus coach at that time, and he said that he still can't recover from the horror of Brussels," said Ancelotti, who was visiting Bulgaria to receive an honorary award from Plovdiv University.

"Football is just a game and it should never turn into something that is a matter of life and death."

Reuters
 
Geof

Geof

Senior Member
#85
May 14, 2004
6,740
#85
The problem is, when there is a will to modernise things, to make them safer and so on, you get a big "No al Calcio moderno" in your face.

Let's face it, most Ultras love the situation as it is now. They feel important, like they're on a mission. Revenge for a killed fan is a great opportunity, they're just waiting for these kinds of things to happen.

Until a big time catastrophy comes in.

Italy needs to invest badly in future oriented stadiums. They never made a chance of hosting EURO2012 with their current stadium policy. Juve, Inter/Milan, Roma/Lazio, Fiorentina, Udinese, Palermo should all be thinking of building new stadiums or at the very least drastically modernise the infrastructure. Things seem to move slowly, as we are about to get a grant for our new stadium, but considering the corrupt retards who are leading calcio right now, it's far from done.


Italy is a perfect country to go on a holiday. Got to love the chronical mess they have there. It's so funny. But actually living there? Must be a pain in the ass.
 

ReBeL

The Jackal
#86
Jan 14, 2005
22,871
#86
World Cup ambitions spell end for Heysel stadium


BRUSSELS, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Heysel stadium in Brussels was spared after tragedy in 1985 but Belgium's dream of hosting the soccer World Cup in 2018 means it is now marked for destruction.

The name Heysel evokes memories of the 39 mostly Italians killed when a wall collapsed after Liverpool fans charged Juventus supporters before the 1985 European Cup Final.

Belgium spent around $50 million on a total overhaul in the ensuing decade in the build-up to Euro 2000 when the ground, renamed after former King Baudouin, hosted several matches including a semi-final.

However, the stadium, venue of seven European club competition finals, is no longer up to scratch.

European soccer body UEFA says it does not meet the standards of an elite venue, meaning it cannot host a Champions League final.

"We made a mistake. It was not only down to the political decision-makers but the sporting associations as well. It's only 2007 and the stadium cannot be used. It's crazy," said Alain Courtois, who leads the Belgian football association's bid to host the 2018 World Cup.

"It means Belgium is not in the position to organise a big international event. It means we have to build now and not just in Brussels."

Belgium's chance of co-hosting the World Cup with the Dutch relies on it being able to boast a more gleaming and impressive structure.

A second facelift for Heysel, which was inaugurated in 1930, remains a possibility but the city of Brussels believes it would be no cheaper than building afresh. Anderlecht, a western district of Brussels and home to Belgium's most successful club, could squeeze in a new stadium.

However, Charles Picque, premier of the Brussels region, made it clear in an address last month that a disused railway yard some four kilometres north-east of the city centre was the favoured site.

Together with upgraded rail connections and a motorway extension, the construction bill could reach one billion euros ($1.46 billion) and is part of a bold revamp that Europe's unofficial capital city plans in the years ahead.

The 60,000-70,000 seater stadium, itself set to cost up to 250 million euros, may not be ready until 2013-2015 but the plans are already advancing.

The state body overseeing the disused railway yard has received around 20 proposals for a commercial development including a stadium.

The private sector is expected to foot at least 80 percent of the bill and Anderlecht will likely relocate from their limited, 28,000-capacity home.

Upgrades elsewhere in Belgium could be funded exclusively by the private sector.

The Benelux countries of Belgium and the Netherlands, along with Luxembourg which would host a FIFA congress but no matches, said last month they planned to make a joint bid for the 2018 World Cup.

They face strong competition from England and other possible bidders Japan, Australia, China, the United States, Russia and Spain.

Courtois, who was tournament director of Euro 2000, believes the successful Dutch-Belgian hosting of that event will help the joint World Cup bid which could strike a blow for smaller countries.

"We will face some big countries but we think we can get the support of small nations. It would give out a message that it is not just the same countries that organise such an event," Courtois, who is also a Belgian senator, said.

Reuters
 
AngelaL

AngelaL

Jinx Minx
#89
Aug 25, 2006
10,215
#89
29 May 2008
Twenty-three years since Heysel tragedy.

May 29 1985, and the European Cup final between Juventus and Liverpool was scheduled in Brussels. It should have been a celebration, yet it became a tragedy even before kick-off: the English hooligans charged against a sector where there were mostly just families; this made the people run away and crowd Sector Z of the Heysel stadium. This being an old structure, it collapsed, dragging the people down with it. Thirty nine of them, mostly Juventus fans, died that night.
«The memory of that tragedy is still with us all – Chairman Giovanni Cobolli Gigli remarked – and it is a warning to keep living football with a more serene attitude and adhering to loyalty values in sport»

«Every year we remember the victims with a youth tournament held here, near Arezzo» Otello Lorentini, the President of the “Roberto Lorentini e Giusy Conti” Permanent Committee Against Violence in Sport, explained, «and we join in the pain of all the families that lost loved ones on that night». And Juventus too, alongside all the fans, are deeply moved in commemorating the Heysel victims, twenty-three years on.
Click to expand...
Juventus.com

RIP Guys (and Gals)!
 
The Arif

The Arif

Senior Member
#90
Jan 31, 2004
12,564
#90
Juve remember Heysel disaster
Thursday 29 May, 2008

Juventus have commemorated the 23rd anniversary of the Heysel disaster, in which 39 people were killed.

Bianconeri supporters were among those killed when a wall collapsed at the 1985 European Cup Final held at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels, Belgium.

Juventus were playing Liverpool who, along with all English clubs, were banned for five years from European competition after their fans were blamed for the disaster.

An hour before kick-off, a number of Liverpool supporters breached a fence separating them from Bianconeri fans.

Juventus' followers subsequently retreated, putting pressure on a dilapidated wall, which gave way under the pressure.

“We have to remember,” explained Juventus President Giovanni Cobolli Gigli.

“We are still deeply moved by what happened and we have to continue to promote serenity in football.”

Juventus and Liverpool infamously played on despite the event. The Bianconeri won 1-0 thanks to a Michel Platini penalty.

That trophy - Juventus' first European Cup - will, however, always be stained by the disaster.

The Italian game has seen an upsurge in violence in recent years, most notably in February 2007 when a policeman was killed at Catania's derby with Palermo.

A year later, Lazio fan Gabriele Sandri was shot dead by a policeman following an incident between Biancocelesti and Juventus fans at an Autogrill near Arezzo.

President of the Committee Against Violence in Sport, Otello Lorentini, said: “It is important we remember this event every year for the sake of families afflicted by football violence.”

Football Italia
 
Nenz

Nenz

Senior Member
#94
Apr 17, 2008
10,420
#94
Football should never be a matter of life and death... unless they're interista or liverpool animals
Juve still haven't had their revenge on those english bastards

ODIO LIVERPOOL!!!
 
JCK

JCK

Biased
JCK
#96
May 11, 2004
123,527
#96
anth_nenna said:
Football should never be a matter of life and death... unless they're interista or liverpool animals
Juve still haven't had their revenge on those english bastards

ODIO LIVERPOOL!!!
Click to expand...
Are you waiting for a day when Juve fans will kill a bunch of Liverpool fans?
 
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