Footage has emerged of Arsenal fans attacking a Bayern Munich fan inside the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday night during the Champions League quarter-final between the two clubs. The match was frantic on the pitch, with four goals scored in total, and it also seems that there was plenty of drama off it.
Tensions were high as the match was Arsenal's first Champions League quarter-final match in 14 years and when things went south on the pitch in the first half, with Bayern overcoming an early 1-0 deficit to lead 2-1, things always had the potential to turn nasty off it.
The footage shows a lone Bayern Munich fan standing in the middle of a group of Arsenal fans while a couple of them take turns trying to punch him. To the Bayern fan's credit, he never retaliates and is more focused on protecting himself until stewards get to him to usher him away.
they took turns on them ðŸ˜ðŸ˜ðŸ˜ https://t.co/0harKhcMFV pic.twitter.com/YUdT9FcVTr
— k🪷 (@klvuii) April 9, 2024
Bayern fans infiltrate the Emirates
According to reports from other fans, this wasn't the only incident involving Bayern Munich fans inside the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday night. UEFA had banned all Bayern fans from attending the match in a traditional away end after they threw fireworks onto the pitch in earlier Champions League matches this season against Lazio and Copenhagen.
Coming into the match, there were fears that Bayern fans would still travel to London and attempt to enter the stadium via tickets purchased from Arsenal members. Those fears were realised when a large contingent of German fans were seen outside the stadium with a banner that read “We're going to London anyway. Wembley calling – F**k UEFA”.
Many reports quickly came in from Arsenal fans at the match claiming that they were sat near a large group of German supporters. This was despite the club issuing a warning to supporters in the build-up to the game that any fans who were found to have sold their ticket to Bayern fans would be banned indefinitely from the Emirates Stadium.
Bayern Munich banner outside the Emirates tonight, after their fans were banned from going to the match… pic.twitter.com/eOWfDDOcq6
— Football Away Days (@FBAwayDays) April 9, 2024
Arsenal fans left reeling
One Arsenal fan took to social media platform, X, to post: “Really upset being next to a load of Bayern fans in the East Stand. Unsure what kind of an Arsenal fan sells his ticket to a Bayern fan, it made the atmosphere angry and distracted the fans from the task at hand.”
Another posted: “I was disappointed (yet unsurprised) to see so many Bayern fans in the Upper East Stand. An area of the ground which always seems to be invaded with touts. Arsenal need to do more about this, an ongoing issue.”
A third said: “I was in the east stand and it was kicking off. People were throwing stuff towards the Bayern fans and the stewards did nothing. It could've got ugly really quickly.”