Fenerbahce's players clash with Trabzonspor supporters at the end of Turkish Super Lig soccer match between Trabzonspor and Fenerbahce at the Senol Gunes stadium in Trabzon, Turkey, Sunday, March 17, 2024. Turkish top tier club Trabzonspor fans invaded the pitch following a home loss against Fenerbahce late Sunday, touching off violent scuffles between the fans and Fenerbahce players. (Huseyin Yavuz/Dia Images via AP)
Fenerbahce's players clash with Trabzonspor supporters at the end of Turkish Super Lig soccer match between Trabzonspor and Fenerbahce at the Senol Gunes stadium in Trabzon, Turkey, Sunday, March 17, 2024. Turkish top tier club Trabzonspor fans invaded the pitch following a home loss against Fenerbahce late Sunday, touching off violent scuffles between the fans and Fenerbahce players. (Huseyin Yavuz/Dia Images via AP)
FSANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish police have detained 12 people after fans of top tier soccer club Trabzonspor invaded the pitch following a home loss against Fenerbahce, touching off violent scuffles between the fans and visiting players.
The Trabzonspor fans charged onto the pitch as Fenerbahce players celebrated their 3-2 win following the final whistle of the Turkish Superlig game in the Black Sea coastal city of Trabzon late Sunday.
Some Fenerbahce players hit back at fans who kicked or punched them and video of the clashes went viral.
Defender Bright Asayi-Samuel on the run that knocked one pitch invader to the ground and forward Michy Batshuayi struck a fan running fast toward him with a .
Security staff later helped the Fenerbahce players down the tunnel into the locker rooms.
The incident came just months after the president of top-flight club Ankaragucu was arrested for punching a referee following a match, prompting the Turkish Football Federation to briefly suspend league games.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Monday that police detained 12 people in connection with the violence.
Yerlikaya said among those detained were a person who threw a projectile at Fenerbahce coach İsmail Kartal during the match, a man who was the first to invade the pitch, a fan who grabbed the corner flag and charged toward the players and a person who hit Fenerbahce goalkeeper Dominic Livakovic.
Earlier, Yerlikaya said an investigation was ongoing and that those who invaded the pitch would be identified.
“The occurrence of violence on football fields is not acceptable,” he wrote.
The Turkish Football Federation also condemned the incident and said those responsible would be punished following an investigation.
FIFA president to condemn the incidents as “absolutely unacceptable,” and called on Turkish authorities to hold the perpetrators to account.
The clashes happened after Batshuayi scored in the 87th minute to secure the win and stay just two points behind Galatasaray in a tight league title race between the Istanbul city rivals. Trabzonspor, the 2022 champion, is a distant third in the standings.
___
AP soccer:
The ɫtv Press. All rights reserved.
For many Indigenous communities, access to financial services and economic opportu…
Trust in international money transfers has long been tied to physical places: a ba…
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Tax: | |
| Today's total: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
