2000 UEFA Cup Final riots
| 2000 UEFA Cup Final riots | ||||
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| Date | 17 May 2000 | |||
| Location |
City Hall Square, Copenhagen, Denmark 55°40′33″N 12°34′9″E / 55.67583°N 12.56917°ECoordinates: 55°40′33″N 12°34′9″E / 55.67583°N 12.56917°E |
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| Causes | Retaliation attacks for murders of Leeds United fans by Galatasaray fans in Istanbul, and football hooliganism. | |||
| Methods | Riot | |||
| Result | 19 civilians injured, 60 arrests | |||
| Parties to the civil conflict | ||||
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British hooligan firms
The 2000 UEFA Cup Final Riots, also known as the Battle of Copenhagen, were a series of riots in City Hall Square in Copenhagen, Denmark, between fans of English football team Arsenal and Turkish side Galatasaray around the 2000 UEFA Cup Final on 17 May 2000. The scuffles, in which four people were stabbed, also involved fans from other clubs and were viewed by the media as part of a retaliation for the killing of two Leeds United fans by Galatasaray supporters the month before.
The events of the day started early in the morning when skirmishes broke out in a bar, which led to an Arsenal fan being stabbed. Later in the day, Galatasaray fans occupied City Hall Square before heading towards Arsenal fans in bars nearby. The Galatasaray fans were later attacked from behind by members of British hooligan firms seeking revenge for the Istanbul stabbings. Despite deploying 2,000 officers to the area and having prior warning of potential trouble, the police were unable to control the riot until they fired tear gas at the rioters. This led to 19 injuries, including 4 stabbings, and 60 arrests with similar events occurring in England and Turkey in the aftermath of the riots.
The riots were condemned by football authorities with threats of expulsion of national football teams from European competition being given out if similar events happened again. The Danish police also were criticized for their handling of the riots.
Arsenal qualified for the final by defeating French club Lens in their semi-final. Galatasaray beat English team Leeds United but their matches were marred by violence: two Leeds United fans were stabbed to death before their semi-final first leg at Galatasaray's Ali Sami Yen Stadium in Istanbul on 6 April 2000. The events happened at 22:00 in Istanbul's Taksim Square during a fight between Leeds fans and Galatasaray fans. Leeds fans had been drinking in bars reportedly taunting local people and Turkish police intervened to stop fights breaking out. There were reports that a Galatasaray fan had run to a telephone to call for support when he saw Leeds fans arriving. Galatasaray fans entered the area shortly afterwards which precipitated a fight between the two sets of supporters. This led to the two Leeds fans being stabbed.
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