Injured and arrested at protest against Bulgarian Football Union during Euro 2024 qualifier, police use water cannon (updated)

Bulgaria - Hungary football match kicked off at 19.00 at the National Stadium "Vasil Levski" in Sofia in front of empty stands. At 5 o'clock the protest of the Bulgarian fans, who demand the resignation of the leadership of the Bulgarian Football Union, started.

European qualifier between Bulgaria and Hungary will be played behind closed doors tonight at the national stadium in Sofia

Shortly after 18:20 the tension escalated. Ultras, most of them with masks on their faces, started throwing various objects, stones, makeshift bombs and incendiary flares at the police officers who were stationed in front of the National Stadium on Gurko Street. The gendarmerie officers called several times with a megaphone for the fans to calm down, but this did not happen and the police used a water cannon to stop the excesses, BNT reporters Martin Goshev and Rosen Stanchev reported.

Some 1,600 police officers in full anti-riot gear were deployed to ensure security in the area around the empty stadium in downtown Sofia.

The police also used pepper spray to try to control the situation. The fans began to tear up paving stones and anti-parking pegs and throw them at the police officers.

Traffic was closed on “Tsar Osvoboditel" boulevard in the section from Blvd. "Evlogi and Hristo Georgiev Blvd. "Vasil Levski" and on Blvd. "Evlogi and Hristo Georgiev from Eagles Bridge to str. Graf Ignatiev".

There were detained and injured. A woman cannot see because she was gassed. There are people with head injuries.

The gathered fans set fire to waste bins, threw stakes and paving stones at the police. Windows of shops were broken.

There are several fires burning in the area, fire engines arrived, and several ambulances with sirens going.

The situation calmed down around 19:30.

A total of 12 people were injured. According to initial information, two or three of them have more serious injuries, BTA reported citing information from the Emergency Medical Centre in Sofia.

Images by Dessislava Kulelieva

***

More than 2,000 supporters gathered outside the national stadium in Sofia on November 16 during the Euro 2024 qualifier match between Bulgaria and Hungary to call for the resignation of BFU president, Borislav Mihaylov.

Last week, UEFA ordered the match in Sofia to be played behind closed doors after a request by the national federation that feared potential trouble between rival fans following the fans' call for a major protest against the Bulgarian Football Union (BFU).

The fans said the BFU’s move was “unprecedented”, as there is no other case in the history of football where a national federation has voluntarily asked to host a match without spectators. The decision fueled anger among the Bulgarian fans.