One Burnley fan has taken to social media to describe the way he was treated by stewards in the London Stadium on Wednesday night.
He tell the camera: “This is not about the fans, this is not about the team, this about the security and staff of the stadium. It’s a disgrace at English football. How can I be threatened to be arrested, kicked out of the stadium and banned for standing up”
“My mate who I was with he got kicked out because he stood up. Have we got to a point in English football where standing up and chanting for your team is given as enough reason to be chucked out of a stadium and threatened to give a ban and a fine.”
In a second video the young Burnley fan continues “I went into the ground and scanned my ticket in which is proof that you have a ticket, I was then threatened to be be kicked out if I didn’t show my ticket. Well clearly if I got past those doors I had my ticket. To be honest the thing that annoyed me the most is my mate got kicked out because he stood up at a football game. People behind me were standing up so I don’t understand the issue here. Guess what they took my name, they took my number, and *** knows what they are going to do with it because I did nothing wrong. West Ham fans this is not about you – they need to seriously sort that out!”
A spokesman for London Stadium 185 told ClaretandHugh this morning: “There were a handful of ejections in the away section for breaches of ground regulations, but the overwhelming majority of Burnley supporters were a credit to their club.”
I’m not whinging about the stadium. I think it’s amazing and I was all for moving. I’m just saying that the club need more control over the stewarding. And urinating in the street is not the same as standing up when the the team are attacking.
I’ve worked in public order policing for nearly 15 years and worked at every ground in London and the point I’m making is that the stewarding at this stadium is the worst I have seen. If you speak to people like sh*t like the stewards do fans will react. The stewards have clearly been told to go in high and have zero tolerance. That doesn’t work.
I am with you on that Cas, at every club generally the stewards are either pretty good or alright unless provoked unlike this mob who other than the young ones seem hellbent on getting aggro first and asking questions afterwards. It is something that will take time to fix but LS185 started with the wrong approach, had clearly no idea about stewarding football matches and generally don’t seem to care too much about the working conditions of their own staff or the customers they are supposed to be stewarding. LS185 imho are not fit for purpose and the stewarding should be taken off them. The David’s are very quiet on this, you can understand why they wouldn’t want to get involved because it involves time and money plus accepting responsibility but imho they should be stepping up and stepping in to fix the stewarding, or give us some assurances that it will change.
If everyone’s standing it makes no odds. But if someone asks you to sit because you’re the only one standing then a reasonable person would do what they’re asked and sit down. It’s like being told you can’t pish in a phone box. It’s the rules so accept it. And don’t complain when you get arrested for urinating in a public place.
its one of the best stadiums in the world. its simple if youre a whingeing whiner who doesnt like our new stadium dont go there. the atmosphere will then improve no end for those of us that like to get behind the players and support our team and our club.
I hope at some point they change the Stewards for match days to be mostly West Ham supporters, I doubt it will happen but the Stewards are having an adverse effect on peoples enjoyment of the game, they should be there to help and make sure every one enjoys a game in safety but most of them look miserable or disinterested which as non West Ham or in some cases Football fans who would blame them, I have also heard them threatening fans with expulsion without seemingly knowing what rights we have or making any rational case for their arguements. LS185 should let our club provide them candidates for these positions, even interview them, in this outsourced World I don’t see that it should be a problem. to devolve match day staffing to the club. I don’t think our directors would agree because they like the deal they have but I would say it is in the clubs best interest to stick their head above the parapit on this and if necessary incur some tie and expense to get everything about the match day experience right.
I agree with Ray Stewart. Part of the reason the atmosphere is poor is the Gestapo stewarding and these plastic fans who turn up 20 mins late and leave 20 mins before the end. The bottom line is that the stewards are hired agency staff who have absolutely no people skills. I got asked for my ticket on Wednesday inside the ground and I told them ST holders don’t have them. The look of confusion on his face was something else. I helped him out in the end and said I had a card which he insisted on seeing. The stadium looks amazing but ends there for me. Hopefully it will improve in time. Standing up never hurt anyone. Fortunately, my love for the club is a lot more than it is for the stadium which is why we will come back year on year. COYI.
how about some actual news like Reece Oxford finally signing a new contract?
Don’t understand the ‘Best Stadium in England’ stuff – it’s a ‘lash-up’, a right mess!
To be fair to them West Ham fans always stand away from home, it’s the accepted norm in the Premier League and below. All other away opposition has been allowed to stand in the London Stadium before Burnley. I was under the impression that most Burnley chose to sit and there is the problem.
London Stadium 185 clamp down on anti social standing but if everyone stands they leave it alone. In this case I would imagine many of the Burnley decided to sit and him and his mate wanted to stand. In the lower left tier at the top corner Burnley were standing but everywhere else they were sitting on Wednesday
What a bunch of cucumber munching melts. I’m with this kid all the way. The reason the atmosphere at the stadium is rubbish is because of all the modern sit and clap politely plastics. Not One of you has clearly never travelled away where the travelling West Ham ALWAYS stand and we always produce the best travelling support. It’s no coincidence. Fight the sanitising of a working class game or take your cucumber sandwiches to the fucking theatre!!!
What planet has this kid been living on?
The law is what it is and has been for 20 odd years. Just because we are enforcing it doesn’t mean we just invented it.
I hope he enjoyed his visit to the best stadium in England.
Can’t see the problem; we’re not allowed to stand, you’re not allowed to stand. Don’t stand and you don’t get ejected.
It’s heavy-handed but it’s actually in the bye-laws. Welcome to the sanitised face of football in 2017.
What’s with the agenda with the new stadium. Constant negative articles about our new stadium. Get over it. Fans of other clubs are bound to be jealous of our new stadium. Fans of the old stadium will always look back sentimentally at the old stadium. But time to smell the coffee mate. Wake up and accept we have a fantastic new stadium.
We report the news which is around. We have run plenty of positive articles on the stadium and often get accused of being too pro club so it is about balance. This video went viral on social media which made it newsworthy and it is an away fan’s personal view.