Boy invaded Wembley pitch in bid to get cash reward
PA MediaA teenager has admitted invading the pitch during the Champions League final at Wembley Stadium as part of a prank to try to get £300,000 from an online influencer.
The 16-year-old ran on to the pitch shortly before kick-off at the Borussia Dortmund versus Real Madrid clash on 1 June.
Willesden Youth Court heard he had been encouraged to invade the pitch by an online figure called Andrey Burim.
The teenager was was given a conditional discharge of six months and ordered to pay a contribution towards prosecution costs.
The court heard that the boy, who cannot be named, had never attended a football game before and “doesn’t care” about the sport.
Addressing the court, he said: “I just decided to do this kind of prank and I’m really sorry about that and I regret that.
“I think that it was a very futile decision.”
‘I hope you have learned a lesson’
Emily McNally, representing the boy, said Mr Burim had been known to “exploit and groom” his followers and to “incite people” to “further his own personal brand”.
Going by the name Mellstroy online, he has 3.2 million followers on Instagram and 1.19 million subscribers on Telegram.
The court heard the boy had had a T-shirt printed with the influencer’s logo before the football match and that he had seen others wearing similar tops at Wembley.
Ms McNally said the teenager had had “no intention” of touching any of the players.
She added that the boy, who admitted going on to the playing area at a football match contrary to Section 4 of the Football (Offences) Act 1991, did not receive a payout.
Sentencing the teenager, Judge Lorraine McDonagh said: “I do notice the prevalence of young people being influenced by these social media influencers.
“I do hope that you have learned a valuable lesson through your involvement in this.”
Police made 56 arrests at Wembley – most of them for alleged attempts to breach security.
Two men were charged with invading the pitch: Yevhenii Lubnenko, 29, who has been banned from football matches in the UK for three years, and David Carneckij who is is due to stand trial on 27 August.
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