Overview

• Sergio Ninotti ended a 40-year silence with vivid recollections of the life-threatening crush and lasting emotional scars from the May 29, 1985 tragedy.
• Former Brussels police deputy Roland Vanreusel recounts the chaos of overwhelmed security forces and defends playing the match as a means to prevent greater loss of life.
• Post-disaster investigations exposed fragmented command between the police and gendarmerie and inadequate barriers that allowed rival fans to clash.
• UEFA’s response in 1990 eliminated standing terraces, mandated assigned seating with compartmentalized blocks, and shifted primary security responsibility to clubs.
• The original Heysel site now hosts the renovated King Baudouin Stadium, but plans for a modern national arena to address capacity and comfort remain stalled.