Scandal in the football regional league. The league game between Türkgücü Munich and the Bayern amateurs was canceled after a police operation.
Munich (dpa / lby) – A banner with a Kurdish flag leads to a police operation with pepper spray and batons in the regional league game between Türkgücü Munich and the Bayern amateurs. After the operation with a total of 19 injuries, the encounter on Saturday was canceled.
Shortly after the kick-off, a banner reading “FC Bayern Fanklub Kurdistan” was rolled out in the Bayern fans’ area, a police spokesman confirmed on Sunday at the request of the German Press Agency. The mood among the fans then changed. The stewards tried to clarify the situation, but then called for reinforcements from the police.
According to the police, Turkish fans of the host felt provoked by the banner. The background could be the attack in the metropolis of Istanbul last Sunday, in which six people died and 80 were injured. The Turkish government blamed the PKK, the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party, and the Kurdish militia YPG. They deny responsibility.
After requests from Bayern officials and the stadium announcer did not help, the police tried to confiscate the banner using batons and pepper spray. “Violence is always the last resort used by the police. Any enforcement of a measure without direct coercion is our favorite,” said a police spokesman. The police were criticized for the harsh measures on social networks.
Nine fans and ten police officers were injured, police said. The severity of the injuries was still unclear on Sunday.
Just two minutes after kick-off, the game was interrupted by the referee for the first time due to a dispute between the fans. The players were sent to the cabins, but returned a little later. After the police operation, the referee finally stopped the game. The police led the fans separately from the stadium.
The Bavarian Football Association decides how the game will be rated or whether there will be a repeat. “The fact that the game was abandoned can by no means be in the interests of football – any form of violence has no place on our pitches,” said the association.