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Police, fans clash after Real Madrid win
2007-06-18
Police clashed with soccer fans in Spain's capital early Monday after Real Madrid won the Spanish league, officials said. More than 100 people were injured. Tens of thousands of people packed Madrid's central Cibeles Plaza around midnight Sunday to await the arrival of Real Madrid players after the team beat Mallorca 3-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium to win its 30th league title. The game marked David Beckham's final appearance for Real Madrid. For the most part, the celebrations were peaceful and festive with revelers dancing and singing in the streets and fireworks and car-horns sounding throughout the city. "I think the behavior was mainly and overwhelmingly civilized and sportsmanlike," Interior Minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba said on state-run Spanish television. "There's always a minority that takes advantage of any spectacle or success to create chaos." At about 2 a.m., small groups of fans began throwing rocks and bottles at police. Riot officers responded with tear gas to disperse the crowd and some used truncheons to beat fans back. Paramedics treated 108 people at the scene, mostly for bruises and broken bones, Madrid ambulance service spokesman Diego Garcia said. He said 22 people were taken to hospitals in the city for further treatment. A police spokesman said 10 people had been arrested, two before the match, one as the match ended and seven at post-match celebrations. Clashes with police and groups of Real Madrid fans are not uncommon whenever the side wins a major trophy. Madrid had not won a league title since 2003.
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