If police do not arrest any suspects over the fireworks incident at SC Cambuur, Nijmegen will bar Feyenoord supporters from attending the club’s next away match against NEC. That was the warning from Nijmegen mayor Hubert Bruls during an appearance on WNL talk show Goedenavond Nederland.
“If it isn’t clear by the beginning of next week whether the perpetrators will be arrested, then Feyenoord fans will just have to stay at home and watch on TV,” Bruls said.
Feyenoord will play NEC away on Saturday, 5 September. It is the Rotterdam club’s next away fixture. Bruls argued that, if police do not make any arrests, those responsible for the incident could simply attend the match.
“The people who did this could just come and watch football in two weeks,” he said. He also questioned the message that would send. “How do you explain that to a 9-year-old? That you can do something like that and just carry on?”
During Feyenoord’s away match against SC Cambuur last Sunday, supporters of the Rotterdam club threw fireworks towards Cambuur fans. Fireworks injured seven people.
Police said on Tuesday that they had not arrested any suspects so far. Investigators are using video footage to identify those responsible.
Accountability
Bruls said he would prefer police to arrest the perpetrators, but argued that authorities need a broader response to tackle the large-scale use of fireworks at football matches.
“Of course, the first thing you have to do is catch the perpetrators. If that succeeds, that is the best outcome. But if it doesn’t, you also have to be prepared to say they are not welcome next time,” he said.
Justice Minister David van Weel also appeared on the programme. He said security staff must improve entry checks at football grounds, particularly because supporters sometimes bring large quantities of fireworks into stadiums.
“It is practically half a military arsenal being set off here,” Van Weel said while responding to footage from Sunday’s match.
The minister said he received a report on Monday about the use of fireworks at football matches. According to the report, authorities have made little progress in tackling the issue since 2018.
Van Weel said he will meet representatives of the KNVB again in two weeks. “I hope we will come up with creative ways to ensure that we no longer see this,” he said.
@anp | NEWS BRAINPORT
