Arsenal fans feared being involved in a situation reminiscent of the Hillsborough disaster during a distressing evening at the San Siro, as noted in a report on European away games compiled by UK law enforcement.

In a document spanning over 40 pages, stadiums in Turkey, Italy, and France were identified as hazardous, with police in Spain being described as aggressive and at times violent.

However, the experience for Arsenal supporters at the legendary Italian stadium during their Champions League game against Inter Milan last November was overwhelmingly alarming.

A fan, who is a recently retired senior military officer, recounted that when an entry gate was finally opened to relieve the pressure, some individuals were found ‘collapsed, lying on the ground, crying and visibly shaken’.

The scenario became so dire that he told his son he might have to lift him out of the crowd crush to grab onto one of the fences above. ‘My arms were pinned to my side, and my main concern was breathing and how I could lift my son up if people began to lose consciousness,’ he explained, describing it as a ‘potentially fatal situation which felt somewhat like Hillsborough’.

‘Indeed, many fans trapped in the situation remarked that this is likely what Hillsborough felt like,’ the fan continued. ‘In my view, this was utterly unacceptable, and I would describe the situation as an exceedingly unsafe environment.’

The statement is one of many in the European Awaydays Fan Survey 2024/25, released by the UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU).

The exhaustive dossier details the experiences of those who have travelled to the continent to watch their teams in European action, along with England matches, and grades each club on safety, security and service.

The report is the second from the UKFPU and is aimed at giving English supporters a voice and presenting a body of evidence which may result in positive change. It comes after the experiences of Liverpool fans at the 2022 Champions League Final in Paris, and similar problems encountered by Manchester City supporters at the same match a year later in Istanbul. Each supporter account has been verified by dedicated officers who are at the matches in question.

There are a wide range of responses, with clubs and stadiums in Germany and Austria singled out for praise. Officials in Ireland, Denmark and Finland are also hailed for their organisational skills and the tactics used by local police.

However, the same cannot be said of many well-known venues. Under a traffic-light system Inter Milan was given a red for safety, as was Juventus. Napoli and Roma have been given a similar grade following visits in previous seasons.

While Spanish police came under fire, experiences at Basque neighbours Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad were mainly positive.

Police holdbacks, where fans are often kept in grounds long after the final whistle, came in for criticism given they can often lead to missed transport connections and long walks in potentially dangerous environments. One Manchester United fan described being forced to take a police-escorted coach to Fenerbahce’s stadium five hours before kick-off before a two-hour holdback which led to a ‘potentially life-threatening situation of crushing against the locked doors’. 

A disabled Villa fan revealed that they had been kicked in the head at Club Brugge thanks to a slippery floor and having to use three sets of stairs with no lifts. They described their experience in the away end as akin to being treated ‘like caged animals’. ‘It was a disgusting ground with disgusting facilities,’ they said.

Those who came in for praise included RB Leipzig, where police were described as ‘friendly, with good humour and organised’, while a Liverpool fan hailed those at Girona, where a holdback was cancelled after intervention from their own dedicated officer and the use of additional toilets.

Chief Constable Mark Roberts, the head of the UKFPU, urged that lessons be learned. 

‘There’s lots of examples where we need to manage getting fans into stadiums better,’ he said. ‘Sometimes it can be the fault of the fans, which we saw at Villa Park with Legia Warsaw supporters (a match which saw 46 Polish fans arrested), but we think it’s worth highlighting the issues. 

‘Unless we document this, things won’t change. We are also seeing more like fan groups like Liverpool’s who meet with local police before big matches. That kind of engagement is really good practice.’

Mr Roberts will present the report at next month’s UEFA conference on safety and security.