Euro 2016 Violence Stretches Into Second Day In Marseille; 9 Arrested, 5 Injured

UPDATED at 2:07 p.m. EDT to include information about an injured fan.

A series of skirmishes, brawls and bottle-throwing incidents between Russian and British soccer fans dragged into a second day in Marseille where authorities have used everything from tear gas to water cannons in an effort to tamp down the violence.

The battles began Friday night after a series of pitched battles that involved French police firing tear gas into crowds of British fans, and fans responding by throwing bottles back. In a separate instance Friday night, a group of French supporters threw firecrackers and bottles at fans coming out of a pub shortly after a match that evening.

Numerous accounts surfaced in British news outlets describing both French police and Russian fans as instigators in the events. “The police are making it much worse than it needs to be,” Darcy King told the Guardian.

“There has been quite a lot of provocation,” the Football Supporters Association’s Dave Tomlinson told the BBC.

Those events led to nine arrests, but the arrival of a new day did nothing to cool tempers. A crime reporter for the Daily Star tweeted a gang of 300 Russian supporters ambushed a group of England fans.

Further clashes compelled French authorities to use more tear gas to disperse crowds from both sides. During one episode, a man thought to be English needed to be revived after being kicked repeatedly in the head, according to a report in the Telegraph.

Saturday’s clash marks the second time British fans have rioted in Marseille. In 1998, its fans butted heads with both French and Tunisian supporters before England played Tunisia in the opening match of the World Cup.

It also extends embarrassing streaks for English and Russian soccer fans, who have clashed with rival fans or with police at a number of recent tournaments. During the 2014 World Cup, British fans attacked and threw beer on Brazilian fans, and Russian fans clashed with Polish supporters during the 2012 UEFA Euro Championships.

England’s reputation so precedes it, that French authorities actually have banned the public consumption of alcohol for 24 hours in Lens June 16, the same day England will square off against Wales. More than a half-million British fans are expected to descend on the French city for that match next week.