Atleast 22 people die at football match

[GLC]

Some 22 people have been killed and at least 132 injured after a wall collapsed at a football stadium hosting Ivory Coast's African Nations World Cup qualifier with Malawi.

Around 50,000 fans were packed into the stadium in Abidjan

It is believed part of a wall at the stadium in Abidjan came down, sparking a stampede of terrified fans ahead of the game.

Police may have fired tear gas, adding to the panic, according to a medical source.

Some 50,000 fans were packed in the Houphouet-Boigny Stadium in Ivory Coast's biggest city for the World Cup qualifier, which the hosts won 5-0.

A number of Premier League players were playing in the tie, including Chelsea's Didier Drogba and Salamon Kalou.

Stampedes are common at Africa's crowded stadiums, particularly when national pride is at stake.

Badly-equipped security forces are far outnumbered and are often unable to control the huge crowds.

sorry if its in the wrong place, but its big news

R.I.P

[Finnegan]

What makes me kind of sad is that incidents like this would likely be rapidly reduced if there was more money put into developing football in lesser developed states.

The stadium in Abidjan is an absolute joke and there's plenty more like it that are accidents waiting to happen.

Could probably be made safe for about the cost of buying Didier Drogba. Madness.

[Part Of The Crowd]

RIP

Shows how reports differ though, the one i read declared it as 19 and only 36,000 people in attendance.

Still, Doesn't matter in relation to the sad thing that has occured. Hope they are recognised in some way

[Finnegan]

Official capacity limit is in the region of 35'000, it was clearly more than that so predicting an actual number would be tricky.

[GLC]

What makes me kind of sad is that incidents like this would likely be rapidly reduced if there was more money put into developing football in lesser developed states.

The stadium in Abidjan is an absolute joke and there's plenty more like it that are accidents waiting to happen.

Could probably be made safe for about the cost of buying Didier Drogba. Madness.

I agree, It's a joke

[Part Of The Crowd]

The unfair thing is they'll use this as a reason not to fund better quality facilites

[Thracian]

What makes me kind of sad is that incidents like this would likely be rapidly reduced if there was more money put into developing football in lesser developed states.

The stadium in Abidjan is an absolute joke and there's plenty more like it that are accidents waiting to happen.

Could probably be made safe for about the cost of buying Didier Drogba. Madness.

I agree but don't foget there are still plenty of shit heap grounds here that remain as accidents waiting to happen including Peterborough.

Seeing a little girl on someone's shoulders at the back of the stand on Saturday was just asking for trouble and you could well have imagined problems had we scored, caused by surging fans.

Not that it ever looked likely that we would score.

[Finnegan]

I agree but don't foget there are still plenty of shit heap grounds here that remain as accidents waiting to happen including Peterborough.

Seeing a little girl on someone's shoulders at the back of the stand on Saturday was just asking for trouble and you could well have imagined problems had we scored, caused by surging fans.

Not that it ever looked likely that we would score.

Sure - but that's a little girl in a League One terrace, not the greatest idea at the best of times.

This is supposed to be an international quality facility capable of hosting a nation of 18 million's premier football team.

[davieG]

It really is a disgrace that so much money is disappearing out of football through player's bank accounts and unscrupulous businessmen whilst fans the world over a treated like we're dogshit on their shoes.

[stez]

Sure - but that's a little girl in a League One terrace, not the greatest idea at the best of times.

This is supposed to be an international quality facility capable of hosting a nation of 18 million's premier football team.

one for all the parents out there, thanks.

we were packed onto that terrace, and i doubt i, or anyone else, could've known that was going to happen before hand.

no matter what the standard of a ground, packing too many people in is never a good idea.

[Guest Bilo]

It really is a disgrace that so much money is disappearing out of football through player's bank accounts and unscrupulous businessmen whilst fans the world over a treated like we're dogshit on their shoes.

This is very true. African football is one hell of a lot wealthier than it used to be, and there really is no excuse for some of the awful stadia that exist there. The sad thing is they show no signs of learning from tragedies like this, as English and European associations did after Heysel, Hillsborough and Bradford.

[davieG]

This is very true. African football is one hell of a lot wealthier than it used to be, and there really is no excuse for some of the awful stadia that exist there. The sad thing is they show no signs of learning from tragedies like this, as English and European associations did after Heysel, Hillsborough and Bradford.

Have we learn't though, there were far too many packed into that terrace yesterday, it may have been acceptable when all grounds were shitty, and I've been in a few but when you consider the constraints on society these days and the standards set elsewhere that was unacceptable.

[Guest Bilo]

Have we learn't though, there were far too many packed into that terrace yesterday, it may have been acceptable when all grounds were shitty, and I've been in a few but when you consider the constraints on society these days and the standards set elsewhere that was unacceptable.

I must admit that it was pretty packed but terraces are now increasingly rare in English football, and terraces as packed as London Road yesterday are rarer still. The days of 30,000 crammed in the Kop at Anfield every week are long gone. I personally never felt unsafe at London Road yesterday or even uncomfortable. It is after all, a safe stadium based on Health and Safety laws, whch are incredibly strict. Basically, if the Health and Safety police say it's safe to hold that amount of people, it is. Sure, it's a shitty ground compared to what we've been used to these past 10-15 years but the majority are far better quality than that, and I imagine that London Road will be either demolished or a very different stadium five years down the line.

[Finnegan]

one for all the parents out there, thanks.

we were packed onto that terrace, and i doubt i, or anyone else, could've known that was going to happen before hand.

no matter what the standard of a ground, packing too many people in is never a good idea.

I've no intention of telling you how to raise your bairn, stez, I've no reason to doubt you're anything but a fantastic dad.

But I also don't doubt you're aware there are certain hazzards that are likely to come with a (potentially) rowdy football crowd in middle-England. Slightly imcomparable situation to a massively over-filled, seriously architecturally unsteady and somewhat decrepit stadium a couple of thousand miles South is all my point was.

[Flynny]

What needs to be asked is not were the facilities faulty, but why all these Africans were here in the first place.

What?

Oh.

[Finnegan]

What needs to be asked is not were the facilities faulty, but why all these Africans were here in the first place.

What?

Oh.

Taxi for Ms. Silverman.

[purpleronnie]

I agree but don't foget there are still plenty of shit heap grounds here that remain as accidents waiting to happen including Peterborough.

Seeing a little girl on someone's shoulders at the back of the stand on Saturday was just asking for trouble and you could well have imagined problems had we scored, caused by surging fans.

Not that it ever looked likely that we would score.

Surely thats down to the parents nothing to do with safety of the ground unmless you are anti terraces?

We have the strictist health and safety laws around so nothing like the African tragedy could happen here...as terrible as hillsborough was it did wake up the authorities and made sure it couldnt happen again, unfortunately other nations dont seem to change even after fans are killed.

[Thracian]

Sure - but that's a little girl in a League One terrace, not the greatest idea at the best of times.

This is supposed to be an international quality facility capable of hosting a nation of 18 million's premier football team.

I can do without dead children in any football ground.

[Thracian]

I must admit that it was pretty packed but terraces are now increasingly rare in English football, and terraces as packed as London Road yesterday are rarer still. The days of 30,000 crammed in the Kop at Anfield every week are long gone. I personally never felt unsafe at London Road yesterday or even uncomfortable. It is after all, a safe stadium based on Health and Safety laws, whch are incredibly strict. Basically, if the Health and Safety police say it's safe to hold that amount of people, it is. Sure, it's a shitty ground compared to what we've been used to these past 10-15 years but the majority are far better quality than that, and I imagine that London Road will be either demolished or a very different stadium five years down the line.

I wish I had your faith in authority.

It wasn't tested but I didn't see the Peterborough situation as safe at all if a goal had been scored, and particularly not for kids.

[Guest Bilo]

I wish I had your faith in authority.

It wasn't tested but I didn't see the Peterborough situation as safe at all if a goal had been scored, and particularly not for kids.

Perhaps my faith in authority is misplaced but it does seem bizarre that in a country where Health and Safety has become such an obsession there are grounds like London Road. Surely if it was unsafe to hold over 3000 people, given the potential for the lawsuits that would surely be levelled against the club if there were injuries caused by the terracing let alone deaths, it would be closed by the FA. There were people able to cut through my row to go to the toilet, which would have been impossible on terraces in the 60s I imagine (before my time though, so I could be wrong).

[Thracian]

Perhaps my faith in authority is misplaced but it does seem bizarre that in a country where Health and Safety has become such an obsession there are grounds like London Road. Surely if it was unsafe to hold over 3000 people, given the potential for the lawsuits that would surely be levelled against the club if there were injuries caused by the terracing let alone deaths, it would be closed by the FA. There were people able to cut through my row to go to the toilet, which would have been impossible on terraces in the 60s I imagine (before my time though, so I could be wrong).

My concern wasn't about the terracing proper, it was the heaving congestion at one particularl upstairs entrance to the stand and the time it took for the late arrivals to force their way to a safer place, those who bothered trying.

At the time I saw the child on the shoulders any sort of surge would have been dangerous and certainly any goal would have tested everyone's theories.

Maybe I'm wrong. Scowey and Cobbo were immediately in front of us and might have seen no reason for concern at all.

[Guest Bilo]

My concern wasn't about the terracing proper, it was the heaving congestion at one particularl upstairs entrance to the stand and the time it took for the late arrivals to force their way to a safer place, those who bothered trying.

At the time I saw the child on the shoulders any sort of surge would have been dangerous and certainly any goal would have tested everyone's theories.

Maybe I'm wrong. Scowey and Cobbo were immediately in front of us and might have seen no reason for concern at all.

This I never saw as I was stood in the middle of the terrace. I can certainly imagine problems being caused by what you saw however. I'm not sure what I'd put that down to, somebody on the thread has put forward the theory of people being inexperienced on terraces and treating the stand like any other by gathering at the back and that does seem a plausible explanation. One solution is what they have at Welford Road, a row that is not occupied by fans but by stewards who can monitor the situation on the terrace. It's a simple solution, and would help with situations like Peterborough in my opinion.