August 19 – Three people were killed and 10 injured, three critically, in rioting between fans of bitter rival clubs in the Honduran capital, Tegucigalpa, at the weekend.
The violence broke out ahead of the fixture between the Motagua and Olimpia after fans intercepted and vandalised a bus transporting Motagua players, police said.
The attack sent shards of glass towards players inside the bus, according to Motagua which blamed members of the Ultra-Faithful Olimpia fan club. The game was immediately called off even though more than 10,000 people were already in the stadium.
“Fans of both teams staged a confrontation on the outskirts of the stadium, so they (police) proceeded with the use of deterrent means,” a statement said, adding that tear gas was used.
Laura Schoenherr, a spokeswoman for the city’s Hospital Escuela Universitario, confirmed that numerous fans were injured in the incident. “Three people died and seven were shot and stabbed. One of them is a boy. Three of the injured adults are in critical condition,” she told Reuters.
“This has to be severely sanctioned by the corresponding authorities,” Motagua said in a tweet. “Reprehensible and lamentable,” it added in another.
A statement from the Ministry of Security confirmed the bus attack and said its perpetrators wore Olimpia shirts.
Three of the players – Emilio Izaguirre, Roberto Moreira and Jonathan Rougier – were transferred to hospital with facial wounds. In a post on Instagram, Izaguirre said it is “painful” to think of those who died in the clashes. He played down his own injuries, saying some glass went into his eye but added it is “nothing serious” and “the danger is over”.
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