Soccer fans brawl before stadium - Shot falls
Amidst brutal heat in Athens, rival fan groups of Panathinaikos Athens clash. Three people were reportedly injured according to state broadcasting (ERT). 70 people are said to have been taken into custody.
Rival fan groups of the Greek traditional club Panathinaikos Athens engaged in a brawl before the football stadium of the club in the center of Athens. According to reports from Greek broadcasting (ERT), at least three people were injured, one by a gunshot. The police, as reported by dpa from police circles, stated that over 70 fans were taken into custody. The cause of the brawl on Saturday remains unclear. It is believed that only Panathinaikos supporters were involved.
On Saturday evening, Panathinaikos welcomed the Cypriot team AEK Larnaka to a preparatory game at Apostolos-Nikolaidis Stadium. The referee officiated the game despite the previous disturbances. Due to temperatures almost reaching 40 degrees in Athens, only about 500 fans attended the game. Greek football has been plagued by disturbances for years. In the previous year, three fans had died in serious disturbances.
Basketball fans caused riots
In May, fans of Panathinaikos' basketball department were involved in riots in Berlin. During a melee before the Euroleague final, a person was critically injured.
According to police reports, around 10:45 pm, approximately 60 people clashed violently at the S-Bahnhof Prenzlauer Allee. Fans of the basketball teams from Athens and Piraeus were involved. Panathinaikos was playing against Real Madrid in the final, while Olympiakos Piraeus was playing against Fenerbahce Istanbul for third place. Trouble had already occurred at the arena at Ostbahnhof before the semifinals. Two policemen were lightly injured.
During the altercation, baseball bats and batons were used, and several people were injured, a police spokesperson said in the night. The number of injured people was initially unclear. There were 89 provisional arrests for identity checks and various criminal complaints for bodily harm and grievous bodily harm.
Following the violent clash, the Greek authorities should closely monitor potential links between sports-related criminality and fan groups in Athens. Instances of criminality, such as the gunshot injury during the Panathinaikos football game, require swift action from Athen's police force toensure public safety.
