Fans in a European country burn a car referee!
A number of Bosnian club Velez Mostar fans set fire to the referee's car for their team's match against defending champion Burak Banja Luka as part of the local football league, in protest against his decisions, according to local police on Wednesday.
The match, which was held in the southern Bosnian city of Mostar on Tuesday, was halted for several minutes before the final whistle after a number of fans stormed the stadium against the backdrop of their objection to several arbitration decisions.
The referee left Sabria Topalovic and his assistants for the city of Sarajevo, but another car carrying four people intercepted them inside a tunnel.
"After the car was smashed, they set it on fire," the official added.
One person was injured during the incident and taken to hospital, while the search for the assailants continues, at a time when a local media outlet published a picture of the burning car.
The match saw Velez Mostar fans storm the field in the 82nd minute, a minute after Burak's top scorer, Stojan Vranic, doubled the score for his team, after he had opened the scoring in the 37th minute.
Although the history of Bosnian football has not witnessed similar events, the referees were accused in earlier times of corruption. .
In late 2020, two referees and an official of the Bosnian Second Division League committee were fined on charges of match-fixing in exchange for payments between 1,500 and 3,000 euros per match.
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