It is not yet known when the suspended match will be played. Ajax has started its season weakly and is only in 13th place in the Eredivisie.
The Dutch Premier League match between Ajax and Feyenoord had to be stopped early in the second half by frustrated supporters thrown torches to the pitch at Ajax’s Johan Cruijff stadium.
The events started in the 37th minute when Igor Paixao already took Feyenoord to a 3–0 lead. At this point, Ajax supporters started throwing torches onto the field and the match was stopped for a while at the end of the first half. The break was reached after nine minutes of added time.
The throwing of torches continued in the second half until, in the 55th minute, the referee stopped the match for good and directed the players to the locker rooms. In Holland, due to the problems, a policy has been introduced that the match will be stopped completely if the disturbances continue.
After the match, some Ajax supporters tried to break into the stadium, but the riot police subdued them with the help of horses and tear gas.
It is not yet known when the match will end.
– This is a pitch black day, Ajax coach Maurice Steijn said.
The Minister of Justice of the country Dilan Yesilgöz-Zegerius comment on events message service in X.
– This has nothing to do with football support. You are playing with the safety of the players, other supporters and yourself. Shame on you, the Minister of Justice wrote.
Ajax’s actions in the early season obviously affected the behavior of the fans. The big club is in 13th place in the league table after four matches, ten points behind league leader PSV. In the previous season, Ajax finished third in the Eredivisie and did not get a place in the Champions League.
Demons of restlessness
Dutch football saw a lot of unrest in the previous season.
Read more: A pitch-black week in Dutch football – experts were shocked by the violence in Europe: “It’s a matter of time until someone loses their life”
In May, a group of ultra fans of the home team AZ Alkmaar tried to attack the section of the stands reserved for West Ham supporters after the final whistle of the Conference League semi-final.
Last season, the match between Groningen and Ajax and the match between Groningen and Nijmegen were also interrupted due to unrest, where a spectator threw a pint at the assistant referee.
The matches between Ajax and Feyenoord have traditionally been fierce. Ajax in April Davy Klaassen received a wound in the head from a firecracker thrown by a Feyenoord fan in the semi-final of the Dutch Cup. The match was suspended, but played to the end.