A helicopter landed on the pitch during a Brazilian football
match to airlift a seriously injured fan from the stadium, following
extreme violence in the stands.
The game, between Atletico PR and Vasco da Gama, was stopped on Sunday night as fans began attacking each other. Fans who were fighting had to be separated by police firing rubber bullets.
Astonishingly, the game was restarted after an hour and ten minutes delay.
This is an event which is embarrassing for Brazil, given the attention on the country following the recent World Cup draw ahead of next summer's tournament.
Incident: Violence escalated in the stands between supporters and one was airlifted out by this helicopter
An injured fan is carried on a stretcher towards the helicopter after violent clashes between the supporters
Separation: Police used rubber bullets to keep warring fans apart as the violence ensued
Horrendous: An Atletico fan was set upon by Vasco da Gama fans as things turned nasty
'This is deplorable,' said Vasco da Gama coach Adilson Batista. 'It's
sad to see images like these just before the World Cup in our country.
I'm shocked, this is not sport.'
Television images showed players yelling at the fans and telling them to calm down. Some players held their hands on their heads as they watched the fight. A few fans tried to leave the stands to find safety, including a young woman. A ball girl was shown crying.
Shocked: A ball girl cries as the violence unfolds in the stadium in front of her
Carried to help: This supporter was taken to the helicopter on a stretcher to receive aid
The game, taking place in Joinville, rather than Curitiba, was a key
clash with the former side trying to earn a spot at the Copa
Libertadores (a South American 'Champions League') and the latter
attempting to avoid relegation - any result but a win would see them go
down to the second division.
The final score saw Atletico win 5-1, and as such, Vasco were demoted.
It was held at neutral venue rather than Atletico's home as a punishment for supporter behaviour in a previous match, according to ESPN.
Atletico PR took the lead early on and then fighting broke out in the stands, leaving one fan in a coma and another 'dead', according to Vasco club director Antonio Peralta.
He said: 'We have one fan in a coma, and a supporter of the other side is dead. Or so I've heard.
'This is not a circus, it is recreation, a sporting event that has to bring joy and not death. At Vasco we do not accept that.'
Shocked: Luiz Alberto said that he saw a young person being hit with blocks of wood and kicked
Dreadful scenes: For this to happen ahead of the World Cup may worry travelling supporters
Atletico defender Luis Alberto was shocked by the events and told
Brazilian television: 'They were trying to escape the Atletico fans. We
saw a young man laying down, getting kicked and being hit by blocks of
wood.
'He is a human being. This needs to stop. We asked them to stop, and they did not listen to us.'
The game later was restarted one hour and ten minutes later, despite the violent scenes.
'We tried to tell the fans to stop because things would only get worse. We looked at the stands and there were no cops. There was nobody there to stop the fighting,' said Alberto, who was shown crying during the event.
'I'm playing for 20 years and I've never seen anything like this in person. We will have a World Cup in our country and we know these images will be shown everywhere.'
One Atletico PR supporter was caught in the middle of several Vasco da Gama fans and was hit several times.
A Vasco supporter also became separated from his group and was attacked by rivals.
'This is very sad, I've never seen anything like this,' Atletico PR midfielder Everton explained.
'One of the fans was alone on the ground and he was being hit for about 10 minutes without anybody doing anything. They wouldn't stop hitting him.'
Brutal scenes: The match was, astonishingly, restarted after an hour and ten minute break
Intervention: Police fire rubber bullets and try to drag the injured man away
Police were not in the stands when the fighting began behind one of
the goals in the stadium. A police official said about 80 private
security guards were on hand to make sure the fan groups remained
separated.
'It's a private event so the security was being provided by a security company hired by Atletico Paranaense,' officer Adilson Moreira told reporters.
'Three fans were in serious condition, but two of them were conscious,' doctor Jose Eduardo Dias told local reporters.
The game, between Atletico PR and Vasco da Gama, was stopped on Sunday night as fans began attacking each other. Fans who were fighting had to be separated by police firing rubber bullets.
Astonishingly, the game was restarted after an hour and ten minutes delay.
This is an event which is embarrassing for Brazil, given the attention on the country following the recent World Cup draw ahead of next summer's tournament.
Incident: Violence escalated in the stands between supporters and one was airlifted out by this helicopter
An injured fan is carried on a stretcher towards the helicopter after violent clashes between the supporters
Separation: Police used rubber bullets to keep warring fans apart as the violence ensued
Horrendous: An Atletico fan was set upon by Vasco da Gama fans as things turned nasty
Television images showed players yelling at the fans and telling them to calm down. Some players held their hands on their heads as they watched the fight. A few fans tried to leave the stands to find safety, including a young woman. A ball girl was shown crying.
Shocked: A ball girl cries as the violence unfolds in the stadium in front of her
Carried to help: This supporter was taken to the helicopter on a stretcher to receive aid
The final score saw Atletico win 5-1, and as such, Vasco were demoted.
It was held at neutral venue rather than Atletico's home as a punishment for supporter behaviour in a previous match, according to ESPN.
Atletico PR took the lead early on and then fighting broke out in the stands, leaving one fan in a coma and another 'dead', according to Vasco club director Antonio Peralta.
He said: 'We have one fan in a coma, and a supporter of the other side is dead. Or so I've heard.
'This is not a circus, it is recreation, a sporting event that has to bring joy and not death. At Vasco we do not accept that.'
Shocked: Luiz Alberto said that he saw a young person being hit with blocks of wood and kicked
Dreadful scenes: For this to happen ahead of the World Cup may worry travelling supporters
'He is a human being. This needs to stop. We asked them to stop, and they did not listen to us.'
The game later was restarted one hour and ten minutes later, despite the violent scenes.
'We tried to tell the fans to stop because things would only get worse. We looked at the stands and there were no cops. There was nobody there to stop the fighting,' said Alberto, who was shown crying during the event.
'I'm playing for 20 years and I've never seen anything like this in person. We will have a World Cup in our country and we know these images will be shown everywhere.'
One Atletico PR supporter was caught in the middle of several Vasco da Gama fans and was hit several times.
A Vasco supporter also became separated from his group and was attacked by rivals.
'This is very sad, I've never seen anything like this,' Atletico PR midfielder Everton explained.
'One of the fans was alone on the ground and he was being hit for about 10 minutes without anybody doing anything. They wouldn't stop hitting him.'
Brutal scenes: The match was, astonishingly, restarted after an hour and ten minute break
Intervention: Police fire rubber bullets and try to drag the injured man away
'It's a private event so the security was being provided by a security company hired by Atletico Paranaense,' officer Adilson Moreira told reporters.
'Three fans were in serious condition, but two of them were conscious,' doctor Jose Eduardo Dias told local reporters.
