by The youth level match that took place at the Estádio Municipal de Olhão at 3pm on Saturday between Sporting Clube Olhanense (SCO) and Clube Desportivo de Odiáxere (CDO) with a final score of 2-1 did not end in the best way for the supporters.
Screaming, swearing and disorder marked the 1st district game, but the defiance didn’t stop with obscenities provoking athletes and parents. At the end of the game, not only did the Olhanense crowd continue to be disrespectful, but they also addressed the mother of a player from the opposing team. to attack herafter asking them to stop the threats.
An Odiáxere fan in his 60s came to his defense and was immediately attacked by a cheerleader in the stands. Five more people from the same group then joined, “who grabbed him by the legs and made him fall from a height of two meters,” CDO director Rui Santos said.
“I had to step in to defend you,” explained the victim, who did not wish to be named, adding that his only goal “was to put the person’s spirits at ease,” but when he did, “another element suddenly appeared. “He pulled me back and made me fall, without giving me time to react,” he expressed, adding: “I remember them kicking me brutally, they did like a real pack of young and tough men.”
The two elements of the Public Security Police (PSP) deployed for the game were at the entrance to the changing rooms, overlooking the riots, but had no reaction. When CDO spokesman Otávio Chau asked the agents for help, the response given was that they were “only there to protect the referees” and could not leave where they were.
Faced with the lack of help, the CDO spokesman then said he was going to contact the PSP and that’s when agents went to the scene. However, the time they took in this understanding was enough because when they reached the spot the conflict was already over due to the intervention of Rui Santos who called the attention of the attackers. Although they threatened him, the fence meant there was no more fighting.
The authorities, who did not call for reinforcements or inform the PSP of what had happened, suggested that the victim report the attackers, which he did not for fear of retaliation and more attacks. When the CDO manager asked if they would report the confrontation in their job report, they said they had “not seen anything”, but at the insistence of the offending club admitted they had referred to “contempt in the stand”. , however they did not identify those involved.
“This situation put the physical integrity of the threatened athletes and their parents at risk,” the CDO chief said, commenting: “It was horrible, there were about 20 drunken vandals looking for trouble.”
Days after the attack, the victim looks at this episode, which took place at a sports event for minors, with sadness and disappointment: “With so many years of football and even more life, I never imagined that I would experience a situation like this,” he emphasized noting: “I feel sorry for football, but I feel deeper sorry for people.”
On social media, there were several reports of witnesses who were shocked by the lack of politeness on the part of the SCO cheerleaders and questioned the lack of action on the part of the law enforcement officers who were present.
Faced with the displeasure of the parents and guardians of the CDO athletes, the SCO expressed regret over what happened and commented that “violence should not be part of football and unfortunately there is still bad behavior from the parents of the athletes in almost all clubs,” adding that “the club apologized to the coach and Odiaxere’s representative on the spot.” Multinews declined to comment further.
Both the CDO and the victim will file a complaint, first with the Algarve Football Association and later with the Public Ministry if warranted.
The clash was not entirely unexpected, given that Sporting Clube Olhanense fans had already threatened parents of CDO athletes the previous weekend, this time at the club’s Stadium, to “prepare for clashes”. Confronted with this “warning”, one of the club’s athletes’ parents says he alerted the PSP, which did nothing to prevent the situation.
Asked about the incident, the Olhão PSP said it was not informed and sent it to the Faro District Administration, which, so far, has not given any answer or clarification.
