Explosive Thrown in Bleachers Prior to Champions League Match

The chaos erupted just moments before the soccer match between Amsterdam's Ajax and Greece's AEK Athens.

soccer ajax aek champions league
Image via Getty/Louisa Gouliamaki
soccer ajax aek champions league

Earlier today, the Greek stadium that hosted the game between Ajax and AEK Athens soccer clubs became a scene of chaos. Daily Mail reported that the incident began when an AEK fan threw a flare into the visitors' bleachers.

In addition to the flare, an explosion, which is believed to have been caused by a petrol bomb, was set off in the same section as well.

 

Dit gebeurde zojuist in het uitvak. #aekaja pic.twitter.com/GOhlczX5FZ

— Daniel Dwarswaard (@DanielDwars) November 27, 2018

Frightening scenes as an AEK fan threw a flare into the rival fans' section before their Champions League clash. pic.twitter.com/GEaAc7rKPR

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 27, 2018

Tensions quickly rose after that, as the Greek fans threw objects at their Dutch rivals. In an effort to suppress retaliation, police officers dressed in riot gear appeared to deal with the chaotic scenes. This led to an encounter between the police and the Dutch fans who attempted to fight back. Pictures show that many supporters of both sides were left bloodied and battered.

Ultimately, there were no arrests that were immediately made. More importantly, there were no fatalities reported. The police even managed to deal with the chaos in time for the opening kickoff, though firecrackers were heard at the beginning of the second half.

This incident comes just one month after the explosion outside of the soccer Stadium in England which claimed the life of club owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha.

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