After the fatal gun attack in Belgium, football fans in Brussels were only able to leave the stadium shortly before midnight. The game against Sweden as part of the European Championship qualification was canceled at halftime due to the incidents in the city. The approximately 35,000 fans in the King Baudouin Stadium had to wait in the arena for around two hours.
Officials provided additional protection for Swedish nationals and accompanied the Swedish national players directly to the airport so that they could leave safely. The managing director of the Belgian Football Association explained this to the Belgian broadcaster “RTBF”.
The audience had previously braved the cool temperatures and their worries and sang together. First the Belgian fans were evacuated, then the visiting supporters in order to avoid crowds. “Everyone stayed very quiet, the fans started singing,” one fan reported.
The crime scene near Place Sainctelette in the north of the Belgian capital is just five kilometers from the stadium. Two Swedish citizens were killed in the attack, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo confirmed on X. According to several media reports, the victims were Swedish football fans.
European Championship qualification: “We can’t play football”
The suspected perpetrator is on the run. The investigation was handed over to the federal public prosecutor’s office responsible for terrorism. According to the national crisis center, Belgium has raised the terror alert level to the maximum.
The Swedish national soccer coach Janne Andersson was informed of the incidents at halftime. “We can’t play football when something like this happens. We and Belgium were in complete agreement that we wouldn’t continue playing,” said Andersson, adding: “It’s completely disgusting.”
Those responsible had learned about ten minutes before the start of the game that “something bad” had happened, Manu Leroy, head of the Belgian Football Association, told RTBF. “It was initially decided to start the game because the stadium was the ‘safest’ place for fans.” When the game was abandoned at half-time the score was 1-1.
It is unclear whether and when the encounter will continue. Belgium had already qualified in Group F for the finals in Germany (June 14th to July 14th) last Friday.