A member of Real Madrid’s security staff has been charged with common assault following Saturday’s Champions League final at Wembley, the Metropolitan Police confirmed on Monday.
A 52-year-old female resident of Madrid, Spain, is alleged to have assaulted a steward during an altercation at Wembley in the aftermath of the final, in which Madrid defeated Borussia Dortmund 2-0. She was arrested on Saturday evening and detained for a number of hours before being released pending further investigation.
She was formally charged with common assault on Monday and will appear at Willesden Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, June 18. She has since returned to Madrid.
The altercation occurred when stadium staff refused to let several family members of Real Madrid players onto the pitch to celebrate the Spanish club’s 15th European Cup.
Mobile phone footage obtained by Spanish news outlet AS, appears to show a woman being forcibly restrained by several Wembley security staff members.
The Madrid staffer usually works at the club’s Valdebebas training facilities but was in attendance to help the club’s security operation for the final.
Madrid club president Florentino Perez has offered to provide legal support ahead of her court appearance later this month.
Club sources insist that the families of the players had been identified and verified by Madrid but were not allowed to join the on-pitch celebrations by the stadium’s security to enter the field of play in the aftermath of the final, which led to the altercation.
There is also understood to be frustration from the Real Madrid hierarchy with the failure to prevent three fans from entering the pitch during the opening stages of the game.
Yevhenii Lubnenko, 29, David Carneckij, 28, and a 16-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, will appear at court later on June 3, July 10 and June 24 respectively after being charged with entering the playing area at Wembley, contrary to Sec 4 of the Football (Offences) Act 1991.
A total of 56 arrests were made across Champions League final weekend.
(Robert Michael/picture alliance via Getty Images)
