Tragedy, as over 130 football fans killed in stadium fracas

Over 130 football fans are feared dead over violent outbreaks and questionable police action in match played in Indonesia, last Saturday afternoon.

This is the deadliest football match in history

More than 300 were rushed to nearby hospitals to treat injuries but many died on the way and during a treatment, with fatalities expected to top 180 people.

This is as death toll is likely to increase because many of the approximately 180 injured who are receiving intensive treatments at various hospitals were deteriorating.

The rioting spread outside the stadium where at least five police vehicles were toppled and set ablaze amid the chaos. Riot police responded by firing tear gas which is banned at soccer stadiums by FIFA  that caused panic among the crowd.

Incidentally, Indonesia is due to host the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup from May 20 to June 11, with 24 participating teams. As the host, the country automatically qualifies for the cup.

Surabaya in East Java province is not only known for its great spicy food for the title the City of Heroes.

Surabaya also has approximately 2.5 million residents.

The clash between supporters of the two Indonesian football teams in this East Java province left over 130 fans and two police officers dead instantly.

Many were trampled to death.

Supporters reportedly started fighting when the two rival football teams inside the stadium argued after the Indonesian Premier League game ended with Persebaya Surabaya beating Arema Malang 3-2.

Persatuan Sepakbola Surabaya, commonly known as Persebaya Surabaya or simply Persebaya, is an Indonesian professional football club based in Surabaya, East Java. It currently plays in Liga 1, the top flight of Indonesian football.

Arema Football Club is an Indonesian professional football club based in Malang, East Java. The club competes in Liga 1, the top flight of Indonesian Football. They are considered one of the country’s best and most successful football clubs and don the nickname “Singo Edan.”

The fights prompted riot police to fire tear gas, which caused panic among supporters, said East Java Police Chief Nico Afinta.

Hundreds of people ran to an exit gate to avoid the tear gas. Some suffocated in the chaos, while others were trampled, killing 34 instantly.

There have been previous outbreaks of fights at matches in Indonesia, with a strong rivalry between clubs sometimes leading to violence among supporters.

Meanwhile, the Indonesia soccer association, known as PSSI, has suspended the premier soccer league Liga 1 indefinitely in light of the tragedy and banned Arema from hosting soccer matches for the remainder of the season.

The country’s Youth and Sports Minister Zainudin Amali expressed his condolence to the victims and their families, saying he regretted that “this tragedy happened when we were preparing for soccer game activities, both national and international level.”

Ferli Hidayat, local police chief of Malang, said there were some 42,000 spectators at the game Saturday, all of whom were Aremanias because the organizer had banned Persebaya fans from entering the stadium in an effort to avoid brawls.

The restriction was imposed after clashes between supporters of the two rival soccer teams in East Java’s Blitar stadium in February 2020 caused a total of $18,000 in material losses. Brawls were reported outside the stadium during and after the semifinal round match of the East Java Governor’s Cup, which ended with Persebaya beating Arema 4-2.

Despite Indonesia’s lack of international accolades in the sport, hooliganism is rife in the soccer-obsessed country where fanaticism often ends in violence, as in the 2018 death of a Persija Jakarta supporter who was killed by a mob of hardcore fans of rival club Persib Bandung in 2018.

Saturday’s game is already among the world’s worst crowd disasters, including the 1996 World Cup qualifier between Guatemala and Costa Rica in Guatemala City where over 80 died and over 100 more were injured.

In April 2001, more than 40 people are crushed to death during a soccer match at Ellis Park in Johannesburg, South Africa.