The Poland football match against Netherlands in their World Cup Qualifier was interrupted by flares thrown onto the pitch by Polish supporters.
They were expressing their anger about the Polish authorities banning them from unfurling a gigantic patriotic banner, as well as delays over entry to the National Stadium for the game in Warsaw on November 14.
Angry fans stood in long queues and were searched before being allowed in because the match was classified as “high-risk”. They were prevented from bringing in a huge banner with the slogan “Go Poland” as well as 300 white-and-red flags.
In response, flares were thrown on to the pitch just after the start of the second half of the game causing play to stop for several minutes.
The banner and the flag display had been backed by the Polish football association (PZPN). It later criticised the authorities for the way the fans were treated, although it condemned them throwing flares.
“Safety at the stadium is a priority. The services responsible for order, acting jointly with the police, make the final decisions on who should not enter the venue. They are also responsible for carrying out checks in such a way as to prevent dangerous items from being brought inside,” read a PZPN statement.
Mateusz Pilecki, from a Polish fans association, outlined the fans grievances on Youtube broadcaster Kanał Sportowy.
“A wonderful, patriotic choreography had been prepared, everything was perfectly arranged, the preparations took a very long time.
“We learned in the afternoon that there would be no possibility of bringing in the choreography and that it was a decision made by the uniformed services, completely incomprehensible to us,” said Pilecki.
“We were humiliated. We were surrounded by a police cordon, forced to use a special entrance, we were led into a tent where they looked between our buttocks, they were digging in our underwear,” he added.
“We have been to scores of games, there has never been anything like this.”
The match was classified as a “high-risk” fixture and as a result enormous queues formed at the stadium with confused fans waiting for hours to get inside.
“In the queues, the girl in front of me fainted, the crush was unbelievable, everyone was pushing,” one fan told conservative broadcaster TV Republika.
“Zero information, none of the volunteers were saying anything through megaphones, people were entering through the wrong gates and then being turned back, creating a pointless jam in both directions,” he added.
In October, Polish fans in large numbers attended a World Cup Qualifier in Vilnius, Lithuania during which, upon spotting Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in attendance with the Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene, they booed and chanted anti-government slogans.
Polish supporters’ groups have for years been in conflict with Tusk as they have tended to support nationalist and Conservative parties. During the presidential election this spring they were supportive of Karol Nawrocki, the victorious opposition Conservatives (PiS) candidate.
During the election campaign Nawrocki was attacked by Tusk’s ruling Civic Coalition (KO) for the fact that in his youth the President had been involved in some trouble between football supporters of rival football clubs, although it turned out that Tusk himself had been involved in similar incidents in his youth, too.
The previous Tusk government (2007-2014) on several occasions clashed with football fans with one incident involving the confiscation of an anti-government banner and detention of those responsible for it.
Nawrocki was present at the Poland v Netherlands game, and Polish fans chanted his name during the pause in play caused by the throwing of flares.
The match ended in a 1-1 draw.
