by Shortly before the end of the match between FC St. Pauli and Hannover 96 serious clashes occurred with the police in the away block of the Millerntor.
(Cover image: Stuart Franklin / Getty Images via OneFootball)
We really enjoy writing about football here and we really enjoy writing about fan-related topics. We don’t feel like we have to write about clashes between fans and police. The last time in this form was a year ago, before the derby.
Today the accident occurred about ten minutes before the scheduled end of the match, so the game even had to be interrupted. The police were in the visitors’ block, some fans fled over the fence towards the inside.
To avoid any misunderstanding: the fans of FC St. Pauli are not at all on friendly terms with Hannover 96, on the contrary. The guests are friends with another team from Hamburg’s second division, whose fans were also in the away block. In the confrontation with the police, however, the boundaries of the club blur or dissolve.
What had happened?
About ten minutes before the end of regulation time, according to the statements of some eyewitnesses, an argument occurred between people in the guest block. The police also explained on Twitter that they then moved to the guest block of the north curve through one of the exits. As a result, there were serious clashes between people in the guest block and the intervening police, who massively deployed pepper spray in the block and used batons.
Advertising
The discussion about the proportionality of policing in stadiums is as old as fan culture in football. What is certain is that the widespread distribution of pepper spray in a fully occupied block of fans poses a huge risk to everyone in the block, including people who were not involved in the altercation.
The fans in the away block reacted and caused the police to leave again. A short time later they marched another hundred more police officers appear, this time in front of the guest block, inside. From there, huge quantities of irritant gas were sprayed into the block, which was still fully occupied. This even included parts of the fan block that had nothing to do with the initial topic.
Only after the police disappeared in front of the fans’ block did the situation calm down. But there were also clashes between the police and visiting fans under the Curva Nord.
The FC St. Pauli fans expressed their solidarity with the visiting fans. In the south curve the organized support of their team was interrupted. Instead, there were strong expressions of solidarity towards the blockade of guests and against the police.
FC St. Pauli stewards, who had suffered significant object attacks, then distributed large quantities of water to people in the away block who had been affected by the irritant gas.
Advertising
Police spray huge quantities of irritant gas in the guest block
The consequences of this operation will certainly be foreseeable only in the next few days. Shortly after the police action, a person was led bleeding into the stadium. After the game, about half a dozen ambulances pulled up behind the visitors’ block. Many fans had to receive medical treatment, some even in hospital.
The incidents in the guest block are another frightening example of how police operations in the block do not lead to a de-escalation of the situation. It is necessary to examine how the clash occurred, in particular the actions of the police.
THE Fan Aid Hannover declared on Twitter that he had one “Completely disproportionate use by the police” document, added: “Units equipped with helmets broke into the guest block without reason and sprayed irritant gas into the crowd.” and announced a statement in the blog. Also the Brown and white help she explained that she “the approach is simply inappropriate and disproportionate” he stopped and thanked the security service “for his mitigating behavior”, as well as providing water to away fans. FC St. Pauli did not want to comment on the facts shortly after the final whistle.
The MillernTon team wishes all injured people a speedy recovery!
// Tim
MillernTon on BlueSky // mastodon // Twitter // Youtube // Facebook // Instagram
If you like what we do here, you can find information on how to support us here.
Advertising
