Photo credit should read: Niall Carson/PA Wire The scene of destruction after football fans clashed ahead of the England vs Russia France Euro 2016 match, in Marseille, France.
Advertisement
Russia’s next game takes place against Slovakia in Lille while England and Wales will face off in nearby Lens on Thursday. “The punishment is excessive, but we can not influence it”, Mutko said.
Reporting from Lille, Euronews Andrei Beketov said: “When Russia was trailing two zero during the match, its supporters were downbeat but when they nearly equalised and they still lost they became frustrated and angry”.
And UK police are also assisting the investigation into the Marseille melee by scouring CCTV, social media and press images to identify any fans who were involved, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) said.
“It’s absolutely unacceptable, and we certainly expect our citizens to respect the country’s laws”, Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday in a conference call.
“We don’t want to be disqualified, we understand that things happen but this is the 20th century”, he said when asked about the UEFA sanction, with Russia’s Football Union having already confirmed they will not appeal.
UEFA have warned English and Russian officials that their teams will be sent home if the trouble continues.
A group of about 200 English fans had been getting progressively rowdier and noisier, singing songs taunting Russian Federation, when a loud explosion was heard and some bottles were thrown.
Europe’s four-yearly football extravaganza has been marred by the scenes of Russian and English supporters fighting pitched battles in Marseille on Saturday, leaving more than 30 people injured. The referee’s final whistle appeared to act as a signal for Russian ultras to launch a violent charge against England fans – men, women and children – in the same end of the ground.
Two days of trouble on the streets of the French city boiled over into the Stade Velodrome immediately after Russia’s 1-1 draw with England. I don’t think only the Russian fans were to blame for the violence.
England fans try to escape trouble in the stadium at full time after their team’s match with Russian Federation. The stadium ban would have been activated had there been any fan violence during qualifying matches.
“It’s correct that they were fined, but if our guys defended themselves – well done then”, said a man. Before the World Cup, Russia will host the eight-nation Confederations Cup next June as a test tournament with St. Petersburg as the main base of four host cities. The match kicks off at 9 a.m. EDT.
Advertisement
This article was originally published at 4:32 a.m.
