England Fans Arrested In Germany For Making Nazi Salutes And Damaging Hotel Room
A group of England fans have been arrested in Germany after making Nazi salutes and damaging a hotel room.
Gareth Southgate's team are set to go up against Germany in their Nations League tie in Munich tonight (7 June). But despite pleas from the manager for travelling supporters to behave themselves during the trip, it has been revealed that eight people were arrested by local police yesterday (6 June).
Three of those were taken in by police after performing Nazi salutes, while cops said another fan was arrested for causing €2,000 (£1,700) of damage after he let a flare off inside his hotel room.
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The other four were arrested following an incident where they were seen insulting police and urinating in public.
The majority of fans seen causing trouble ahead of the match have been slapped with on-the-spot fines of €200 (£170).
In a bid to prevent disorder, a number of bars in the city closed early last night, with some not even opening today, so as to avoid England fans.
Police say they were called to a 'brawl' involving 30 to 50 England fans, though they had all run off by the time armed officers arrived on the scene.
And there have been concerns that trouble could erupt at the game tonight, with some England fans reportedly trying to get tickets in the home end.
Speaking to PA, a spokesperson for Munich police said cops would only be able to stop England fans going in the home end if there was an expectation they may cause trouble.
He said that 700 police officers had been deployed to deal with the influx of England fans to the city since Saturday (4 June), considerably more than would be working for a Bayern Munich match.
This comes after England fans were warned about their behaviour ahead of the World Cup in Qatar later this year.
Last summer, the Euro 2020 final at Wembley Stadium between England and Italy saw huge drunk and drugged-up crowds pile onto the streets of London, causing chaos.
Hoards of ticketless fans also stormed the turnstiles to get into the match, with over 20 people being arrested by the Metropolitan Police.
Chief Constable Mark Roberts is the National Police Chief Council’s lead for Football Policing.
He said UK police will be working with the authorities in Qatar to catch any traffickers at the tournament, telling the Daily Star: "Any fans seen to be misbehaving could also be subject to a football banning order on their return to the UK, as well as being arrested and potentially charged for offences committed in Qatar."
Dominic Smithers