A Manchester United supporter was arrested at Wembley on Saturday after being photographed at the FA Cup final wearing a T-shirt with an offensive reference to the Hillsborough disaster printed on the back.
The unnamed man had a photo posted on social media showing him wearing a customised United jersey bearing the number 97 and the words “Not Enough” above them – seeming to reference the number of Liverpool supporters who died at, or afterwards as a result of, the 1989 stadium crush in Sheffield.
While the person’s face was not shown in the image circulating online, the Metropolitan Police confirmed they had arrested the individual for a public order offence after working with ground staff. A further photo posted by another account showed the man in handcuffs being put into a police van.
“We are aware of this and have worked proactively with officials at @wembleystadium to identify the individual,” they said in a tweet. “He has been arrested on suspicion of a public order offence and taken into custody.”
The FA, Premier League and the respective clubs involved have frequently had to call for rival supporters not to make offensive chants and gestures over the past few seasons regarding Hillsborough, as well as the Heysel disaster and the Munich air disaster.
In a post on Twitter reacting to a photo of the man’s arrest, the Hillsborough Survivors Support Alliance said: “Let this be a warning to anyone else thinking of doing anything similar. And that goes for using any tragedy.”
Before Liverpool and Manchester United played at Anfield in March, managers Jurgen Klopp and Erik ten Hag joined forces to call on fans to stop “tragedy chanting” and offensive songs about the Munich, Heysel and Hillsborough disasters.
Ten Hag said in a message to Manchester United supporters: “‘It is unacceptable to use the loss of life — in relation to any tragedy — to score points, and it is time for it to stop. Those responsible tarnish not only the reputation of our clubs but also, importantly, the reputation of themselves, the fans, and our great cities.”
The Hillsborough disaster occured at Sheffield Wednesday’s ground in April 1989, during an FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest. An inquest jury ruled that the victims were unlawfully killed amid a number of police errors.
Meanwhile at Wembley, the Metropolitan Police said they are aware of a separate incident where Manchester United defender Victor Lindelof was stuck by an object thrown from the crowd.
Lindelof was hit near his left eye by what appeared to be lighter and the Metropolitan Police said they will work with officials to review CCTV footage and identify the culprit.
Manchester United lost the match 2-1 with Ilkay Gundogan scoring both goals to see Manchester City complete their domestic double.
