Towards the end of West Ham’s win over London rival Chelsea, fans began hurling bottles and even seats at one another. The situation escalated when fans attempted to burst through the segregation line, requiring riot police to separate the parties.
Watch as fans of both sides forget that they are there to watch a match:
SHOCKING: Footage of the West Ham & Chelsea fans fighting and throwing seats at each other tonight. ( @Jayzinq)pic.twitter.com/Cp5H1cZ3el
— SPORF (@Sporf) October 26, 2016
This was not the first clash of fans that has taken place in West Ham’s new Olympic Stadium. In fact, they have had clashes with Bournemouth, Watford and Middlesbrough in the Premier League this season. So why does this keep happening? In preparation for the rivalry, there were even extra security measures taken, including metal detectors and a stadium wide alcohol ban. How is this still a problem?
For one, Metropolitan Police will not be deployed at the stadium until December. This is due to the Olympic Stadium not being equipped with the radio system Airwave, the system the police use to communicate.
Until roughly 15 minutes before kickoff, the added security measures put in place appeared to be working, but then several hundred Chelsea supporters entered the staircase that leads up to their entrance at turnstile D. That's where tensions began to flare.
What came next was roughly 10 minutes of swearing and scuffles, with tensions rising further as kickoff was approaching and the stadium stewards refused to let them enter. A handful of Chelsea fans broke rank, causing both police and stewards to panic as the situation worsened. Around halftime, news broke that a Chelsea fan was injured by coins thrown from the West Ham side:
Chelsea fan has his head cut open 'after coin thrown by West Ham fans' https://t.co/A9tgO1j6I0 pic.twitter.com/E1JPgRn27g
— The Sun Football (@TheSunFootball) October 26, 2016
As expected, this only added to the rising tensions as the home fans continued to jeer while bottles and chairs were thrown until West Ham's surprising victory.
Though only one fan appeared to suffer any injuries, this incident brings to light the ongoing security problems that West Ham’s home games have brought this season, and West Ham cannot wait until December to address the situation.
Regardless of team affiliation, it's important to remember: we all are there to watch a game.
