Match abandoned as rogue pyrotechnics show sparks stadium mayhem

Scenes of an entire grandstand appearing to be in flames has shocked the football world with fingers pointed at rogue spectators.

There have been fiery scenes of mayhem as Dutch powerhouse Ajax was forced to abandon its game against Groningen on Monday morning.

Their Eredivisie showdown in Amsterdam lasted just five minutes before players were taken off the field out of fears for their safety when a rogue fireworks display began from the active supporters end of the stadium.

Johan Cruyff Arena briefly appeared to be in flames as spectators were seen scrambling away from that end of the field.

The Sun reports the play was continuing with Groningen in possession of the ball when the stadium suddenly exploded with a pyrotechnic display that happened inside and above the stadium.

You can watch the scary scenes in the video player above.

Ajax's supporters were seen lighting ‘smoke bombs’. Photo by Olaf KRAAK / ANP / AFP)

Ajax midfielder Davy Klaassen reacts to the supporters. Photo by Olaf KRAAK / ANP / AFP.

The incident was reportedly in honour of an Ajax ultra called Paddy, who died last month.

The game was immediately suspended as players were escorted back down the tunnel.

The fireworks continued to go off without any players on the pitch for well over a minute.

During the pause in play the cameras continued to show the display and panned around the stadium.

One fan was spotted hilariously sticking his fingers in his ears to try and block out the noise of the pyrotechnics.

However, the referee then made the decision to completely abandon the match.

This was because the match official could not guarantee the safety of the players.

Ajax confirmed the abandonment of the match with a brief statement.

“The match has been definitively abandoned. Ajax – FC Groningen will not be resumed,” the club said.

The powerhouse club eventually released another statement, slamming the fans’ actions.

Photo shared on X from the front row of the stadium before the mayhem occurred.

Terrifying. Photo by Olaf KRAAK / ANP / AFP.

Somehow, there were none seriously injured. Photo: X.

The club insisted that it would be taking steps to identify the people who were responsible.

“Ajax finds what happened in the stadium tonight utterly scandalous,” the club said.

“We apologise to everyone affected in any way. The safety of spectators and players has been jeopardised.

“This is unacceptable. We emphatically distance ourselves from this misconduct. Fireworks have no place in the stadium.

“Spectators in the affected section of the stadium were frisked.

“Dogs were also deployed to detect fireworks, both inside the stadium before it opened and as spectators entered.

“Other preventative measures were also implemented. Despite this, we were unable to prevent this situation.

“We will, of course, review the camera footage to try to identify the perpetrators and investigate in other ways who is responsible.

“If this leads to the identification of perpetrators, we will take appropriate action.”

— with The Sun

Originally published as Match abandoned as rogue pyrotechnics show sparks stadium mayhem