A local pub in Dortmund witnessed unprecedented mayhem as fans of both teams erupted in violence ahead of the Euro 2024 semi-final between England and the Netherlands on Wednesday, video shows.
Chairs were thrown, beer cans flew into the air and even a television was hurled to the ground before fans began fighting.
British police said five people suffered minor injuries after England fans were overtaken by Dutch supporters. According to the BBC.
Police reported that a Dutch fan had attempted to steal the flag before getting out of control.
Wednesday’s incident was a far cry from the banter that erupted between Italian and Albanian supporters during a group stage match in Dortmund last month.
An Albanian fan broke a handful of spaghetti in front of the Italian fans, and one of the Italian fans got on his knees and jokingly begged the Albanian fan not to do that.
The winner of Wednesday’s match will face Spain in the Euro 2024 final on Sunday.
Fans became violent in the hours before kick-off, with police describing some Dutch supporters as “dangerous”, the BBC reported.
England had an eventful run to the semi-finals.
Fans and pundits have questioned England’s failures in the tournament, especially as they were favourites to win it.
England relied on extra time and a spectacular finish from Jude Bellingham to narrowly beat Slovakia in the last 16.
They then faced Switzerland in the quarter-finals, which were decided on penalties.
Meanwhile, the Netherlands cruised through their first two group stage matches, beating Romania 3-0 and Turkey 2-1, both in extra time.
