On 22 October 1989 during an association football match, two home-made nail bombs were thrown by a Feyenoord hooligan at De Meer Stadion, the home ground of AFC Ajax in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The explosions injured 19 people.
| 1989 De Meer nail bombs | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | 22 October 1989 | ||
| Location | |||
| Caused by | Football hooliganism | ||
| Parties | |||
| Casualties and losses | |||
| |||
Background
editThe rivalry between Ajax and Feyenoord football clubs, who hail from Amsterdam and Rotterdam respectively, is one of the fiercest in the continent. During the 1980s there has been a large number of significant hooligan incidents between the two clubs and amongst other Dutch clubs.[1][2] Another major hooligan incident not related to the derby in 1989 was the Staafincident, when an Ajax hooligan threw a metal rod at the goalkeeper during a match against Austria Wien.
Incident
editA Feyenoord hooligan threw the bombs, containing nails and fireworks, at a home section of the ground. Nineteen fans were hurt, nine of them seriously.[3] Riot police immediately cleared the away section and searched all the away fans when exiting.[4] The game continued as usual, ending in a 1–1 draw.[5]
Aftermath
editThe incident was widely reported in national and international media. An article in The Times said that "the Dutch reputation for football violence is rapidly overtaking that of the British as the worst in Europe."[4]
By Tuesday 24 October, three Feyenoord fans were arrested by police. Feyenoord was ordered to play its next match against FC Den Haag behind closed doors.[6]
The incident, among others, influenced the decision to build the all-seater Amsterdam ArenA.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Hijinks & Hostilities: A Look At The Ultra Passionate De Klassieker - Football Whispers".
- ^ "Holland's most hate-filled fight club: Ajax vs Feyenoord". 27 April 2007.
- ^ "What Is Hooliganism In Football Criminology Essay - Literature Essays". 19 July 2017.
- ^ a b Brown, Sean (13 September 2013). Football Fans Around the World: From Supporters to Fanatics. Routledge. ISBN 9781317997863 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Spijkerbommen bij Ajax - Feyenoord - Nieuwsdossier - het belangrijkste nieuws uit het verleden". www.nieuwsdossier.nl.
- ^ "Third fan arrested for bomb blast".