There were ugly scenes on the streets of the Spanish city of Seville ahead of West Ham ’s Europa League tie on Thursday evening.
The Hammers are due to play Sevilla in the Europa League Round of 16 clash on Thursday, with thousands of fans making the trip to the Andalusian capital from East London.
Two sets of fans, reported by Spanish radio station Cadena Cope to be West Ham and Eintracht Frankfurt supporters, clashed on the streets of the city on Wednesday evening.
Frankfurt fans had seen their side triumph 2-1 at Real Betis – city rivals of Sevilla – earlier on Wednesday, with the two matches being staged on separate days due to UEFA rules of matches in the same city.
Video footage shows two groups of fans stage a running battle on the street with glass bottles, sticks, bar seats and tables thrown amid the chaos.
The incident appears to have taken place outside an Irish bar in the city, in which a large group of fans had been assembled and were drinking during the evening.
Video footage captures a rival set of fans approaching the bar in a coordinated attack, before launching a series of missiles and objects, which then received a retaliation.
A report from Spanish TV station La Sexta claims that ‘there are moments of great tension’ at the scene and claimed that ‘there are injuries’ among those who were present.
The incident is reported to have taken place on the streets surrounding Paseo Colon in the city – a central area in Seville which houses an Irish bar and is close to the city’s main bus station, and beside the famous bull ring.
West Ham won their Europa League group stage earlier this season to progress through automatically to the Round of 16 of the competition.
They will face the competition record-holders Sevilla, who have won the Europa League six times – most recently in 2020, when they defeated Inter in the final.
Speaking ahead of the tie, West Ham boss David Moyes said: “I feel it is where the players should be. The group we have are capable. There are times this season where it does not matter who we play, we will get a win. I see this as a great game for us.
“Sevilla have a really good history in the competition. It is two legs – we have this one and we are looking forward to the London Stadium next week. You want to play in Europe. It is the elite to challenge yourself against."
The city of Seville will also host this season’s Europa League final in May – with Sevilla’s Sanchez Pizjuan home stadium the venue.
