January 18 – Portuguese authorities are investigating the circumstances that led to a top-flight league match being abandoned at half-time and spectators evacuated on to the pitch after cracks appeared in a stand.
Estoril were 1-0 up at home to Porto on Monday when around 2,500 away fans were ordered from one of the stands. According to broadcaster Sport TV one of the pillars had cracks of around 2cm.
The stadium, which is 25km from Lisbon, was opened in 1939 and has a capacity of 8,000.
A report on Estoril’s website read: “After meeting the entities of Estoril Praia, FC Porto, Liga Portugal and Security Forces, it was understood that the security conditions were not met for the game to continue.
“The interruption is linked to the fact that part of the north side of the Estadio Antonio Coimbra da Mota had damage in the middle, which caused some alarm and that led the authorities to safely evacuate the entire stand in question.
“In due course, the fans who have come to watch the game will be informed about how they will be compensated for their tickets.”
It is not clear whether the crack was linked to an earthquake in southern Portugal whose epicenter was located some 127 km east of the stadium.
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