Ugly scenes

Rapids fans attacked and harassed in Bosnia

Around 700 Rapid supporters made the trip to Bosnia.

(Bild: GEPA)

Rapids' first leg of the last 16 in the Conference League in Banja Luka came to an inglorious end, and not just because of the bitter 1:1 equalizer in stoppage time! There were ugly scenes after the final whistle, with Bosnian hooligans throwing stones, bottles and flares at the 700 or so supporters in the visitors' sector. And then harassed by the police... 

In the European Cup, it's normal for away fans to have to stay in the stadium after the game. But what happened in Banja Luka was sick, it was madness. Bosnian hooligans tried to storm the visitors' sector outside the stadium. They didn't succeed, so stones, bottles and flares flew at the 700 or so Rapid fans in the sector. The area became a cage, blocked by the police. Nobody got out, but the police did not intervene for a long time. Fortunately, the escalation of violence ended relatively mildly and no panic broke out.

Stopped for hours
And then the harassment really began. The green and white fan convoy was stopped for hours on arrival at the Bosnian border and all the fans were frisked. The journey only continued 70 minutes before kick-off, meaning that not all fans were in the stadium at the start of the game. Which is why Rapids fans only presented their choreography at the start of the second half.

On the return journey, the harassment became even more pointless. Because the buses, escorted by the police, were not allowed to make a single toilet stop until Slovenia (!). Instead, they were held up for another two hours at the border with Croatia. Arbitrary harassment. While those fans who stayed in Banja Luka after the game also had to watch out. Bosnian hooligans hunted down the green and white fans in the city. Something that seems to happen frequently in the Balkans.

It is therefore all the more important that no Borac fans are allowed at the second leg in Hütteldorf on Thursday. UEFA had imposed a ban. Nevertheless, the Weststadion will be a cauldron, with over 20,000 tickets already sold ...