8 arrested after Udinese fans ambush rivals' train
Udinese fans ambushed a train carrying rivals from Venezia after their Serie A match Saturday, triggering a massive brawl that left several injured and caused eight arrests, Italian police said Sunday.
Around 50 Italian and Austrian supporters of Udinese, many covering their faces and some wielding flares and smoke bombs, occupied the tracks at Basiliano, not far from the northeastern city of Udine where the home side had won 3-2.
They forced a train carrying Venezia supporters home from the match to stop, at which point several dozen fans on board descended onto the platform, sparking what police described as a "massive brawl".
The early evening clashes only lasted minutes as officers quickly intervened, backed by a police helicopter.
Most of the Udinese supporters fled and the Venezia fans got back on the train, police said in a statement.
But eight people were arrested, including five Austrians, one Bosnian and one Albanian.
Several of the fans were injured, two of whom were transported to Udine hospital by ambulance, while three police officers were also hurt.
The train was also damaged due to objects thrown at the carriages, police said.
Passengers who did not attend the match were transferred to another train and the Venezia fans were moved to undamaged carriages.
They all left around 8:00pm (1900 GMT), less than two hours after the incident began.
The match had been highlighted as high risk after violence erupted when the teams met in Venice on October 30, when Udinese fans were attacked near the train station before they returned home.
Police said they had provided an escort for an estimated 1,200 Venezia fans from their trains to the stadium on Saturday and back again.
Officers were also stationed at Basiliano in case of a potential gathering of Udinese fans.
According to the Italian press, the Udinese hooligans this weekend were backed by ultras from the Austrian club Salzburg, with whom they have links.
HEADLINES
- Former MLB commissioner Fay Vincent dies at 86
- Lakers’ title odds skyrocket, Mavs' plummet after Doncic-Davis trade
- LeBron denies rift with AD, reportedly had no idea trade was coming
- Dolphins' Achane responds to Hill: 'We got dogs' on our roster
- Jokiharju, Vaakanainen named to Finland's 4 Nations roster