Football falls victim to London riots

London Riots

London riots

The violence which has traumatised London for the past four days has led to the cancellation of several games, including the England v Netherlands international friendly.

With Britain in a daze from the unexpected rioting and looting which has now spread to several cities, the Football Association had no choice but to cancel Wednesday's Wembley match, with all available police urgently needed to regain control of the streets.

The Dutch squad, due to fly out from Amsterdam on Tuesday, were informed the police could not guarantee their or their fans' safety. The KNVB may seek compensation.


A friendly between Ghana and Nigeria in Watford was also axed, along with League Cup ties at Bristol City, Charlton, Crystal Palace and West Ham. Tottenham Hotspur saw its ticket office put out of action following the first outbreak of trouble on Saturday night following the fatal shooting of a man in the neighbourhood by the Metropolitan Police.

Fulham, QPR, Tottenham, Crystal Palace, Millwall, Watford, Leyton Orient, Dagenham & Redbridge and Barnet are all due to play at home in the London area this weekend but those games must be in doubt if the violence flares up again.

With 16,000 police on the streets, the capital city was quiet tonight but there was serious trouble in Birmingham, Leicester, Nottingham and above all in Manchester and Salford.

Update Thurs 11th Sep - Tottenham v Everton on Saturday has been postponed as Tottenham High Road is still a crime scene and the police cannot spare resources to cover the match.

Wembley

(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile