PEC Zwolle defeated Ajax 5-1 over the weekend to win their first KNVB Cup, upsetting the the likely Eredivisie champions. Things started out well for Ajax when Ricardo van Rhijn put his team in front just three minutes into the match ... then this happened.
Ajax fans disrupt Dutch Cup final with fireworks and smoke bombs
The match was stopped for over 30 minutes thanks to a literal rain of fire.
Dean Mouhtaropoulos
Thanks to this pyrotechnic display that damaged the pitch, set ad boards on fire, and delayed the match for more than 30 minutes, Ajax lost their momentum and went on to allow five unanswered goals.
Kicking Balls
It got so bad that despite pleas from head coach Frank de Boer and former goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar, who is now Ajax’s chief marketing officer, the match was nearly abandoned.
Fortunately for Zwolle, officials allowed the mess to be cleaned up and the match was played out without further disruption.
Dutch police later reported that 19 people had been arrested before the match in Rotterdam, so between that and the sheer volume of incendiary devices tossed on the pitch, it seems clear there was a group that had planned all the shenanigans.
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