Legia Warsaw fined £86,100 for Aston Villa violence

Legia Warsaw have been fined £86,100 following the violence which marred last month’s Europa Conference League tie at Villa.

Police attempt to put out flares that have thrown towards them outside the stadium before the UEFA Europa Conference League Group E match at Villa Park, Birmingham. Picture date: Thursday November 30, 2023. PA Photo. See PA story SOCCER Villa. Photo credit should read: David Davies/PA Wire. RESTRICTIONS: Use subject to restrictions. Editorial use only, no commercial use without prior consent from rights holder.

A total of 46 visiting supporters were arrested following clashes with police which left five officers injured, with one requiring hospital treatment for smoke inhalation, ahead of the fixture on November 30.

Uefa’s control, ethics and disciplinary body also banned the Polish club from selling tickets to supporters for their next five European away matches and given 30 days to compensate Villa for damage caused around Villa Park, which included broken fences and lighting poles.

But European football’s governing body stopped short of kicking Legia, whose supporters have a lengthy track record of causing trouble, out of the competition entirely.

The violence outside Villa Park, which began around 50 minutes before kick-off and led to no visiting supporters being admitted to the ground, prompted the UK’s head of football policing, chief constable, Mark Roberts to call for the toughest possible punishment.

Legia had seen their ticket allocation for the fixture reduced from 1,700 to 1,002 on the advice of the UK’s Safety Advisory Group, after violence flared in at an earlier tie with AZ Alkmaar. That led to a £15,000 Uefa fine and their supporters from being barred from attending their next away match at Zrinjski Mostar.

Villa lodged a formal complaint with Uefa over Legia’s conduct in the build-up to the November 30 tie, which they believed exacerbated the situation.

Police said they were faced with “disgusting and highly dangerous scenes” outside Villa Park, as visiting supporters threw flares, bricks, bottles, branches and a variety of other missiles. Two police dogs and two police horses were also injured, while visiting fans also attempted to set fire to a police van.

Of the 46 arrests, 43 were for charged with a public order offence, two with assaulting police officers and another for possession of a knife. Many are due to return to the UK for a further court hearing next month.