African soccer’s governing body condemns fan behavior following death of supporter at Champions League game

Esperance supporters clash with riot police during the CAF Champions League quarterfinal match between Esperance Sportive de Tunis and JS Kabylie.

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CNN
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The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has “strongly condemned” the behavior of football fans at two CAF Champions League matches in Tunisia and Morocco on Saturday, it said in a statement released Monday.

According to Raja AC, one of the clubs involved, a supporter of the team died before its match.

The games concerned were Raja AC against Al-Ahly in Casablanca, Morocco, and Esperance Sportive de Tunis vs. JS Kabylie in Tunis, Tunisia.

“Aziz El-Badrawi, Chairman of al-Raja Sporting Club, in his name and on behalf of everyone in the Club, conveys his deepest condolences to the family of the Raja Club fan, Noura, who passed away prior to our team’s match with the Egyptian team al-Ahly,” a statement posted on the club’s social media reads.

There was also unrest in the stands during the match between Raja Casablanca and Al Ahly.

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“The Raja Chairman and all the team express their deepest sadness over the loss of a member of the Raja Family and can only raise their hands in humility to God Almighty asking Him to endow her with His mercy and dwell her in Paradise and give her family patience and serenity.

“To God we belong and to Him we shall return.”

Veron Mosengo-Omba, CAF’s general secretary, said in the CAF statement: “The scenes in Tunis and Casablanca were unacceptable and we cannot tolerate this in football.

“We condemn unruly actions by some supporters in the strongest terms. CAF will hand over the matter to our judicial structures for further investigation.”

Social media footage from Raja AC’s game shows supporters crowded together outside the ground attempting to enter a stadium gate.

Social media posts from the Esperance fixture show a fire in the ground and fan disruption causing players to attempt to calm the situation, while security forces stand with riot gear on the pitch.

CNN’s Sammy Mncwabe contributed to this reporting.