A fire broke out in the Johan Cruijff Arena during an atmospheric campaign prior to De Classic between Ajax and Feyenoord. Before the match, the hard core paid tribute to the Ajax supporter Carlo Picornie, who died in 1997. He died 25 years ago in the ‘Battle of Beverwijk’, a massive fight between Ajax and Feyenoord hooligans at a meadow in Beverwijk. Shortly after the unveiling of a large banner, fire broke out in the section due to fireworks.
Due to the fire that started in the section, there was a lot of smoke in the stadium at the beginning of the first half. The kick-off was a few minutes later because of the fire. The fire was extinguished shortly afterwards with fire extinguishers.
Fans of the F-Side are dressed in white for the tribute. Picornie was part of the older guard within the hard core of the F-Side.
The fight happened on March 23, 1997. Ajax and Feyenoord played that day in Waalwijk and Alkmaar. Due to closed roads, the supporters met in a meadow along the A9.