November 13 – Botev Plovdiv’s management have strongly condemned the violence that took place during the derby against Levski Sofia in the Bulgarian efbet League.
During the halftime internval at the ‘Georgi Asparuhov’ stadium in Sofia, Levski ultras fired rockets at supporters of Botev Plovdiv, injuring one fan who was nd taken to hospital.
Botev reacted instantly and after the end of the game, which ended 1:1, demanded answers from the law enforcement authorities and Levski management regarding security at the match.
“At the break between the two halves of the match, Botev’s supporters were bombarded with dozens of flares, one of which hit a man who was taken to hospital by ambulance.
“The shelling of the guest sector, where there were dozens of women and children, showed several extremely dangerous and puzzling things. We will not dwell on the culture and adequacy of part of the home supporters, because these ugly and dangerous manifestations are not a precedent,” said Botev in a statement.
“On the other hand, we want to express our strong disappointment with the organisation of the meeting and the subsequent actions of the police, who let hooliganism continue for a long time without any intervention.
“Why and how did the law enforcement authorities allow an entire arsenal to be brought into the stadium? Shouldn’t there be a thorough inspection at the entrances to the sports facility?
“In the event that the police did their job in good faith before the start of the football match, preventing the introduction of the rockets in question, then we direct our question to the management of PFC Levski Sofia – how the rockets in question reached those who fired them at our supporters and will do our colleagues take into account what happened?,” continued the statement.
“Dear supporters of the game of football, today the football celebration that the Botev and Levski teams created could have ended in a tragic accident.
“Botev’s management condemns the criminal activities of a handful of self-absorbed ‘supporters’ of Levski, while we remain awaiting a public response to our questions from both law enforcement and the hosts’ management.”
Contact the writer of this story, Aleksander Krassimirov, at moc.l1716108266labto1716108266ofdlr1716108266owedi1716108266sni@o1716108266fni1716108266