The Egpytian soccer community stands in mourning tonight as rioting and violence consumed Port Said stadium following the home teams victory over top Cairo club and fierce rivals Al-Ahly. Rioting within and around Port Said stadium is continuing as the local police are reported to have fled the scene.
Trouble started under unclear circumstances as the match ended in a 3-1 victory for Port Said, and fans rushed the pitch. It seems that Al-Ahly fans rushed the field to yell at their own players for losing to relative minnows at the same time Port Said supporters ran on to lift their players on their shoulders in celebration and it quickly turned into a melee. Upon receiving news of the deaths the Egyptian soccer association ordered play be suspended at another match in the capital, Cairo, and rioting has also broken out there in what seems to be a senseless level of anger at the game being stopped. The two teams have a long history of clashes and tonight seems to be destined to rank among the worst. Several football games after the revolution have witnessed violence due to the absence of police forces who were routed during the struggle against the regime of Hosni Mubarak.
Image credit: Al-Jazeera
Written by: Matthew Wall, editor, soccerprose.com
