At the TSG Hoffenheim game in Augsburg there are several injured people, two suspects and clear words from the TSG after a firecracker explosion.
After Explosion of a firecracker during FC Augsburg’s Bundesliga game against TSG Hoffenheim The two suspects are currently in custody. The Augsburg police confirmed this on Monday. The police arrested the two 28-year-old men from the Göppingen area on Saturday and took them into custody in the Gablingen prison. According to the police, an investigating judge issued an arrest warrant
The number of injured people initially remained at eleven. There was no “life-threatening danger” to anyone, it said. It’s probably mainly about blast trauma.
The firecracker was thrown from the “guest block area” on Saturday (November 11th, 2023) during the 1-1 draw between FCA and Hoffenheim and exploded near the corner flag. The police did not provide any information about the injured people. According to information from the “Augsburger Allgemeine”, a 12-year-old and a 17-year-old girl are also said to be affected.
Rosen: “Incomprehensible nonsense”
Two men were arrested during the game. They are “suspected of having been involved in the crime.” They were identified from video images of the incident, police confirmed.
“Any perpetrators have no place at TSG Hoffenheim”
TSG sports director Alexander Rosen called the firecracker throw on Monday (November 13th) “a merciless madness. There is no justification for this irresponsible behavior by individuals. We are glad that there apparently were no more serious injuries and that two suspected perpetrators have now been identified could.” And further: “Any perpetrators have no place at TSG Hoffenheim; they will be banned from the premises for life. We are also in close, personal contact with the injured parties.”
What about those affected?
“We are in close, personal communication with the injured parties. I wasn’t the only one who spoke on the phone to those affected and their relatives, who were also very grateful for the support provided. We will remain in dialogue with the injured TSG fans and will continue to get involved as a club. We are also connected to our scene.”
Referee Brych thought about abandoning the game
Most of the approximately 28,000 spectators, like the players on the pitch, were shocked. Referee Felix Brych interrupted the game for around five minutes because of the incident in the 57th minute.
It was then able to be completed without further incident. “I have never heard such a loud bang in a football stadium,” said Brych, who is also very experienced internationally. “I said clearly that if something like that happens again, we have to leave the field,” reported the 48-year-old.
Firecracker throw at Augsburg against Hoffenheim: TSG reacts with a statement
The referee referred to the DFB’s so-called three-stage plan, which would have called for the game to be abandoned as the final reaction. As a first step, Brych gathered the players in the center circle to talk.
TSG Hoffenheim apologized in a statement on Saturday evening and announced that it would support the investigating authorities so that the crime could be fully investigated. “In our 16 years in the Bundesliga we are confronted with such an insane derailment for the first time,” it said. With its values, the TSG stands for peaceful coexistence.
