Head of the Department of Public Order and Sport Benjamin Koppe condemns violence at the match between Jena and Cottbus

On the evening of 28.09.2022, the regional league match between FC Carl Zeiss Jena and FC Energie Cottbus took place at the Ernst-Abbe-Sportfeld. The match was overshadowed by violence and a massive use of pyrotechnics.

"This senseless violence - especially the firing of pyrotechnics at other people - cannot be justified by anything and lacks any rationality. People who misuse soccer matches for violent actions and assaults have no place in a soccer stadium. It is to be hoped that all suspects in this context will be investigated and brought to justice. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the majority of the Jena fan community for their level-headed behavior during this unspeakable action. This prevented a further escalation of the situation. Overall, the match can be described as another low point in the reputation of soccer," said Benjamin Koppe, Head of the Department of Public Order and Sport, on the incidents of yesterday evening.

According to the Jena public order office, there were initially physical altercations shortly after the start of the match when a group from Cottbus arrived at the stadium perimeter, which were stopped by police intervention. After both groups had arrived in their respective spectator areas, part of the Cottbus group disguised themselves, broke down a security door to the home fan area and then forced their way into it. This aggression also had to be stopped by a massive police operation. At the start of the second half, the entire Cottbus fan community set off bright pyrotechnic flares. In this context, rockets were fired into the home fan area. This endangered the life and limb of innocent and peaceful fans. Due to these incidents, the match was about to be abandoned.