African football: A litany of violence and stampedes ... and innocent lives lost
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74 dead in football riot
Violence erupted at a football match in Port Said, Egypt, which has left seventy four people dead and hundreds more injured.
Police accused over riot deaths
Funerals are taking place in Egypt for some of the fans killed in a football riot.
SERIOUS crowd violence following an Egyptian league match between Al Masry and Al-Ahly has left at least 73 people dead and up to one thousand injured and brought about a suspension of all professional leagues in the country.
The incident is the latest in a rash of stadium disasters to hit Africa since the turn of the century:
- Zimbabwe, July 9, 2000 - Tear gas was fired by police and 13 supporters died amid unrest at the Harare National Stadium during an international match between Zimbabwe and South Africa.
- South Africa, April 11, 2001 - Mass overcrowding at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg at a derby match between Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates led to 43 people being crushed to death. Some reports suggested as many as 120,000 people were admitted into a stadium which, at the time, had an official capacity of 60,000. The stadium was later renovated for use at the 2010 World Cup.
- Ghana, May 9, 2001 - Police fired tear gas into the crowd after unrest at a match between Hearts of Oak and Asante Kotoko at the Accra Sports Stadium resulting in mass panic and a stampede. The incident resulted in the deaths of 127 people, making it the worst disaster of its kind in Africa.
- Democratic Republic of Congo, April 30, 2001 - Fourteen people were killed during a stampede at a match between Lupopo and Mazembe.
- Zambia, June 3, 2007 - Twelve fans were killed in crushes at the end of Zambia's win over DR Congo in Lusaka. It came 11 years after a similar incident in the city in which nine died.
- Ivory Coast, March 29, 2009 - A wall collapsed at the Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny before the start of a World Cup qualifier between Ivory Coast and and Malawi. The incident left a reported 22 people dead and more than 100 injured - but the match was allowed to go ahead with the Ivorians winning 5-0. Officials blamed a stampede of ticketless fans at the 45,000-capacity stadium.
