Aston Villa v Legia Warszawa: Police officers injured after clashes involving fans of Polish team outside Villa Park
Four police officers have been injured and 46 people are in custody after “disgusting and highly dangerous scenes” before Aston Villa’s game with Legia Warsaw.
West Midlands Police said fans of the Polish side were not allowed into the stadium after missiles were thrown at officers before the start of the Europa Conference League game on Thursday evening.
The visiting fans were held in the coach park near the ground, while officers faced “90 minutes of sustained violence”.
Stewards also removed several people believed to be away supporters from the home stands during the match, while footage on social media appeared to show objects being thrown into the stadium from outside.
Police attempt to put out flares thrown towards them outside the stadium
A safety advisory group recommended that the ticket allocation for away fans be cut by a thousand after trouble at Legia Warsaw’s match against AZ Alkmaar in the Netherlands in October.
The force’s assistant chief constable, Damian Barratt, said this was not “taken well by the club”, with fans turning up to pick up tickets that were not there for them.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
‘He’s on fire’ – officer hit by flare
“The away fans were in an area that was identified as a ticket collection point, we were seeking to facilitate their safe entry with tickets,” he told Sky News.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
‘He’s on fire’ – officer hit by flare
“That became unsustainable and unachievable because we couldn’t maintain the same safety because they didn’t have tickets.”
He said the mood “quickly changed” when it became clear tickets were not going to be issued to all fans – and they “turned their attention onto the police officers”.
“That quickly escalated into the throwing of missiles. Those missiles were hard objects, they were flares,” he said, adding he was proud of the efforts made by officers to control the disorder.
“One of our officers was injured as a result of being struck by a flare and suffered both a burning of clothes and smoke inhalation as a result of that,” he said.
Police said in a statement that one of the injured police officers was taken to hospital, while two police horses and two police dogs were also hurt in the “disgusting and highly dangerous scenes”.
The force posted on X on Friday: “Of the suspects, 41 of those were arrested for violent disorder, four for possession of a knife/offensive weapon, and four for assaulting emergency workers.
“All of those arrested are away fans, and we’ll be working hard to charge and remand those suspects where we can today.”
A police officer is helped up by colleagues after being hit by a flare
Legia Warsaw fans ejected from the home stand by stewards
Chief Inspector Tim Robinson said: “This should have been a great evening of football which was enjoyed by fans from both clubs.
“Unfortunately, there were appalling scenes which saw away fans dangerously throw flares and other missiles at our officers.”
West Midlands mayor Andy Street wrote on X, formerly Twitter: “Deeply unpleasant scenes outside Villa Park tonight, which were dealt with absolutely appropriately by West Midlands Police.
“A huge thank you to the brave officers who put themselves in harms way to keep others safe.
“I trust UEFA will now move swiftly to take strong action.”
Legia Warsaw fans were sectioned off from the home fans by police
UEFA has said it “strongly condemns the unacceptable violence” which occurred around the match.
“UEFA is in the process of gathering all official reports from the game before deciding on potential next steps,” it said in a statement.
Read more from Sky News:
Premier League to hold fresh New Deal summit
Two football fans arrested over alleged abuse of female referee
In a statement, Legia said their official delegation, owner and president refused to enter Villa Park in solidarity with their supporters, while they also complained about the ticketing situation.
Aston Villa and Legia went into the match neck-and-neck at the top of Group E in the Europa Conference League, with the home side coming out on top with a 2-1 win.
The eight group winners automatically go through to the last 16 of the competition, while the eight runners-up go into a play-off with the third-ranked teams from the Europa League groups.
UK drivers are “confused” by the country’s electric car transition, ministers are being warned.
Although most drivers are not hostile towards electric vehicles (EVs), many are confused about what changes are coming and when, according to new research from the AA.
In a survey of more than 14,000 AA members, 7% thought the government was banning the sale of used petrol and diesel cars.
Around a third thought manual EVs exist, despite them all being automatic.
More than one in five said they would never buy an EV.
The government’s plan for increasing the number of electric vehicles being driven in the UK focuses heavily on increasing the supply of the vehicles.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
What you can do to reach net zero
In 2024, at least 22% of new cars and 10% of new vans sold by each manufacturer in the UK had to be zero-emission, which generally means pure electric.
Each year, those percentages will rise, reaching 80% of new cars and 70% of new vans in 2030.
Manufacturers will face fines of £15,000 per vehicle if electric vehicle sales fall short of 28% of total production this year.
Read more from Sky News:
Survivor reflects on five years on from COVID
At least 12 people injured in shooting in Toronto
By 2035, all new cars and vans will be required to be fully zero emission, according to the Department for Transport.
Second-hand diesel and petrol cars will still be allowed to be sold after this date, and their fuel will still be available.
There are more EVs – but will people buy them?
In February, 25% of new cars were powered purely by battery and in January, they made up 21% of all new cars registered in the UK.
But despite the growth of electric sales, manufacturers continue to warn that the market will not support the growth required to hit government EV targets, and called for consumer incentives and the extension of tax breaks.
The AA suggested the government’s plan focuses on “supply but does little to encourage demand for EVs”.
It called on ministers to co-ordinate a public awareness campaign alongside the motoring industry which directly targets drivers who doubt the viability of EVs.
“Our message to government is more needs to be done to make EVs accessible for everyone,” said Jakob Pfaudler, AA chief executive.
Which? head of consumer rights Sue Davis said: “When it comes to making sustainable choices such as switching to an electric car, our research shows that people are often held back by high costs, complex choices or uncertainty.
“The government needs to provide the right information on electric vehicles and other sustainable choices so that people have the confidence to switch.”
A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “We’re investing over £2.3bn to help industry and consumers make a supported switch to EVs.
“This includes installing a public charge point every 28 minutes, keeping EV incentives in the company car tax regime to 2030, and extending 100% first-year allowances for zero-emission cars for another year.
“Second-hand EVs are also becoming cheaper than ever, with one in three available under £20,000 and 21 brand new models available for less than £30,000.
“We’re seeing growing consumer confidence as a result.”
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports11 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway