Barcelona (dpa) – The many Eintracht fans in the stands of the Camp Nou stadium during Frankfurt’s 3-2 away win at FC Barcelona caused great trouble in Spain.
Barça president Joan Laporta apologized to fans after the Europa League quarter-finals. “I am ashamed and apologize. This will never happen again. We have information about what happened. It is outrageous and shameful. We will act and explain it,” Spanish media quoted him as saying. He did not give details.
The club had previously announced that 5,000 tickets had officially been sold to German fans, as required by the European Football Union UEFA. In fact, there were probably around 30,000 Eintracht supporters in the Camp Nou, which offers almost 100,000 seats. Spanish media speculated that many tickets for Germans probably came from resales and from travel agencies. In view of the strong German fan presence, some Barça supporters left their seats for ten minutes during the game in protest.
The Spanish newspaper “Sport” was harsh on the club and the fans. “It is absolutely unacceptable, no matter how you look at it, that in a European game where Barça are playing for a place in the semi-finals, the Camp Nou becomes a pressure cooker – but in favor of the opposing team,” the newspaper said. The club and its members need serious self-examination. “What happened at the stadium last night must never happen again!”