Hillsborough disaster exonerating the Liverpool fans, MacKenzie issued the following statement: In response, Trevor Hicks, chairman of the Hillsborough Family Support Group, rejected MacKenzie's apology as "too little, too late", calling him "lowlife, clever lowlife, but lowlife". A press conference held by families of the victims also banned all "Sun" reporters from entering, with a sign on the door reading "NO ENTRY TO SUN JOURNALISTS". Sales of "The Sun" remain poor in Merseyside and a boycott is still practised. In 2004, its average circulation in Liverpool was 12,000 copies a day. Following the April 2016 verdict of unlawful killing, "The Sun" and
Hillsborough Stadium the smallest. On 15 April 1989, the ground was the scene of the Hillsborough disaster in which 96 Liverpool fans were crushed to death at an FA Cup semi-final. The subsequent Taylor Report into the disaster led to a series of safety improvements at the ground and other stadiums around the country, including the requirement for clubs in the top two divisions in England to have all-seater stadiums, and the withdrawal of perimeter fencing around the pitch. Plans by the club to renovate the stadium and expand the capacity to 44,825 have been approved by Sheffield City Council with the