Along with zestful vibes and fanatical craze, soccer brings more ‘physical’ to the venue than paid for, at least this time so. The Russian fans were out there marching on for their national day where clashes broke out in Warsaw and police had to intervene, so much so, that there were a couple missiles that were thrown as well.
Euro 2012: Fans in Warsaw clash
The stadium where Russia and Poland were to have their match had a mixture of fans and police which gave the game a chaotic start. There had been reports of over a hundred people who were arrested and around 10 who were left injured. The match ended before the expected time in a 1-1 draw.
It was reported that there had been several Polish fans who had tried to attack the Russian fans before the match had begun and that’s when the scuffle began. Instead of having posters and banners, there were other non-sporty items involved with the game.
Along with the fired missiles, there was tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannons used to bring the situation under control.
In other parts of the city, cafes and places with big screens showing the game were also heavily vandalized. Groups met head-to-head both in revolt of the other side and in favor of their own, having more police involved there as well.
Because of a series of incidents like these happening continually, proceedings have been called out by European football’s governing body Uefa, against Russia. Anti-racist slurs, beatings, vandalism have all been caught and recorded on camera.
Russian fans have gone to such an extent that they started to abuse and punch stewards after their match against Czech Republic. Russia won that match 4-1 however there were four stewards who had to be taken to the hospital right after that match.
The only black player of Czech, Theodor Gebre Selassie, was also hurled racial abuses during and after the game.
There have been anti-racial squads and teams who have been put to work after such events. The governing body has been assuring that such kind of notorious behavior will be dealt with in the strictest manner and all necessary steps will be taken to ensure that the game is played with just game intentions in mind.
“We urge all football fans now in Poland to remember that they represent Russia. Please respect yourselves, your country and your team.”
Tags: EURO 2012, Fans, Football, Poland, Russia, Soccer, Warsaw
