Black smoke protests and an invasion of the pitch by at least one fan have resulted in the Dutch league game between Groningen and Ajax being permanently suspended today.
In the seventh minute of the Eredivisie matchday 32, with Groningen already relegated, uncalled Ajax Francisco Conceição was preparing to take a corner when local fans threw black smoke onto the pitch.
At the same time, a fan holding a poster protesting Groningen’s relegation stormed onto the Euroborg pitch, evading security forces until he was apprehended.
However, the players retired to the locker rooms: the referee still tried to resume the call, but after a couple of minutes the situation repeated itself and he realized that he could not achieve success, finally suspending the match.
Tensions have escalated in recent days between Groningen fans, who themselves whistled at players as they returned to the pitch to try to restart the match, and club management.
Groningen, whose relegation was confirmed in the previous round, did not play in the Dutch second division for more than 20 years, namely in the 1999/2000 season.