A sports riot is a riot that occurs during or after sporting events. Sports riots occur worldwide.[1] [2] Most riots are known to occur after the event is done, but some have been during the game (see football hooliganism). While association football is one of the more well-known triggers for riots, other sports which have triggered riots include ice hockey[3] and motorcycle racing. There are a number of factors believed to influence whether riots occur, including cultural factors; environmental factors such as temperature, darkness, and noise; and witnessing player violence.
The following are various examples of a sports riot:
| Riot name | From | Until | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nika riots[4] | In what is known to be one of the first forms of sports rioting, supporters of the chariot racing teams, the Greens and Blues, revolted against the Byzantine Empire's leader Justinian. At least half of the Empire's capital of Constantinople (now Istanbul) was burned by the rioters, and 30,000 people were killed. Soldiers under the Roman generals Narses and Belisarius trapped the rioters in the Hippodrome and slaughtered them. | ||
| 1909 Scottish Cup Final | After the Scottish Cup ended in a tie, instead of going into extra time, an angry crowd invaded the pitch and tore down the goalposts, as well as attacking the mounted police, resulting in over 100 injuries. | ||
 Johnson-Jeffries riots[5] | After African-American boxer Jack Johnson defeated the "Great White Hope" James J. Jeffries in the "Fight of the Century", race riots erupted in dozens of U.S. cities. | ||
 Richard Riot[6] | After the suspension of Montreal Canadiens great Maurice Richard, angry fans wrought havoc in Montreal, and Richard had to make a public appeal to end the riot. | ||
| The Roosevelt Raceway Riot | In an evening race at the former Roosevelt Raceway racetrack in Westbury, New York, two horses finished following a mid-race crash. The race was declared official, and it angered the 23,127 fans in attendance that night, setting off a riot. The fans were throwing bottles and other debris, and then jumping over the railing, smashing the tote board, followed by them attacking a judges booth. Finally, the fans set fires, as arriving firemen set their hoses on the rioters to push them back. 15 people were treated for injuries. [7] | ||
 1964 Lima football riot | In the worst riot in association football history, the host Peru was losing to Argentina, and before the game ended, the fans ultimately rioted, and the police fired tear gas into the crowd, as well as padlocking the gates, leading to 318 deaths, with many from asphyxia. | ||
 Båstad riots | Demonstrators protested the participation of Rhodesia and South Africa in the Davis Cup, which led to intervention from the Swedish Police. | ||
 1971 South Africa rugby union tour of Australia | In South Africa's tour, anti-apartheid groups protested, resulting in a state of emergency in Queensland, leading to 700 people being arrested. | ||
| Ten Cent Beer Night | Ten Cent Beer Night was a promotion held by Major League Baseball's Cleveland Indians during a game against the Texas Rangers at Cleveland Stadium on Tuesday, June 4, 1974. The idea behind the promotion was to attract more fans to the game by offering 121NaN1 cups of 3.2% beer for just 10 cents each (regular price was 65 cents) with a limit of six per purchase.[8] During the game, fans became heavily intoxicated, culminating in a riot in the ninth inning. | ||
| Disco Demolition Night | Disco Demolition Night was an ill-fated baseball promotion that took place on July 12, 1979, at Comiskey Park in Chicago, Illinois. At the climax of the event, a crate filled with disco records was blown up on the field between games of the twi-night doubleheader between the Chicago White Sox and the Detroit Tigers. Many of those in attendance had come to see the explosion rather than the games and rushed onto the field after the detonation. The playing field was damaged both by the explosion and by the rowdy fans to the point where the White Sox were required to forfeit the second game of the doubleheader to the Tigers. | ||
 1981 South Africa rugby union tour of New Zealand | 10 years after the controversial tour of Australia, South Africa began its tour of New Zealand, and like the '71 tour, South Africa became an international pariah due to its apartheid law. Protestors eventually revolted and broke into the country stadiums before and during games, leading to 2 of the games being cancelled. | ||
| Detroit 1984 World Series Riot | After the Detroit Tigers' World Series victory over the San Diego Padres in 1984, riots broke out that killed one person and left 80 injured and eight rapes reported. Millions of dollars in property damage including a burned squad car and taxi. Rocks and glass bottles were reportedly thrown at police who were wearing riot gear.[9] | ||
| Aggieville Riots | In 1984 and 1986, after 2 college football games between rivals Kansas State and Kansas, a group of 6,000 celebrating KSU fans, after a 24–7 victory, crowded into a bar, and eventually became rowdy, and initiated a riot. 2 years later, after KSU once again defeated KU, this time 29–12, another group of 6,000 KSU fans, this time wearing "Riotville" shirts, rioted again, and also torched a Volkswagen Beetle. | ||
 19 May incident | In Workers Stadium, rioting Chinese fans were silenced by the People's Armed Police. | ||
| 1986 Montreal Stanley Cup riot | After the Canadiens won the finals, fans took to the streets to celebrate, and ended up rioting. | ||
| 1990 Detroit riot | Widespread rioting occurred in Detroit after the Detroit Pistons won the 1990 NBA Finals. Eight people were killed. | ||
| Chicago Bulls Championship riots | Rioting and looting occurred in Chicago after the Chicago Bulls won the NBA Finals in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996 and 1997 | ||
| 1993 Montreal Stanley Cup riot | A year before the riot in Vancouver, Montreal experienced a riot shortly after their Canadiens defeated the Los Angeles Kings in the 1993 Stanley Cup Finals, as victory celebrations mutated into unrest. In the epicenter of the riots, Ste. Catherine St., stores were looted and police cars were set on fire. The riots eventually caused $2.5 million in damage,[10] $ in dollars. | ||
| 1994 Vancouver Stanley Cup riot[11] | The National Hockey League's Vancouver Canucks lost to the New York Rangers in Game 7 of the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals. In what was supposed to be a congregation of 50 to 70 thousand fans led to riot after a man fell into the crowd. Policemen attempted to aid the man on bicycles, which the fans attempted to take, and the police fired tear gas into the fans, initiating the riot. | ||
| 2000 UEFA Cup Final riots | The Wednesday before the UEFA Cup Final, a fan from Copenhagen was stabbed, and eventually, a group of Galatasaray fans confronted and provoked a group of Arsenal fans in a bar, starting a brawl. Later, approximately 500 Arsenal fans attacked from the main road behind the Galatasaray fans. This caused a severe riot in the city square with several restaurant facilities used by fans to fight each other with iron bars and knives also being used.[12] This lasted about 20 minutes[13] before the police attempted to break up the fight with tear gas.[14] The violence, which reportedly included fans from other Premier League clubs,[15] lasted for 45 minutes.[16] There were further also clashes at the airport the day after the game.[17] | ||
| 2006 Edmonton Riots[18] | Following a playoff victory against the San Jose Sharks, up to 30,000 fans of the Edmonton Oilers flooded onto Whyte Avenue to celebrate, with vandalism breaking out and bonfires being built on the street. 49 arrests were made, 8 of which were riot-related | ||
 2006 Basel Hooligan Incident | Fans of FC Basel 1893 stormed St. Jakob-Park in the waning minutes of a game against FC Zürich. Zürich eventually scored, and ended Basel's chances of a threepeat Swiss Super League championship. In an attack of Zürich player Iulian Filipescu, who scored the winning goal, a flare was thrown at him, and Filipescu and teammate Alhassance Keita was forced to kick at the fans before police detained the hooligans. | ||
 2007 A.S. Roma–Manchester United F.C. conflict[19] | During a game between A.S. Roma and Manchester United F.C., groups of fans started throwing missiles over a barrier that was to separate the fans, prompting Italian riot police to enter the stadium, which eventually sparked a brawl. | ||
| 2008 Montreal riot | After the Canadiens defeated the Boston Bruins in the first round of the 2008 Stanley Cup playoffs, fans began rioting in celebration. | ||
| 2010 Lakers riot | After the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Boston Celtics in game seven of the NBA Finals, fans rioted in celebration. | ||
| 2010 Montreal riot | Montreal was stricken with a fifth riot after the Canadiens defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals of the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs. | ||
| 2011 Vancouver Stanley Cup riot[20] | Seventeen years after the 1994 riot, Vancouver was faced with a second riot, after the Canucks lost, also in Game 7, to the Boston Bruins. Unlike in 1994, the fans met at giant screens, where Game 7 was being televised. Shortly before the game's end, fans began throwing bottles at the screen, as well as burning Canuck and Bruin jerseys and flags. The riot eventually escalated when fans began overturning and burning cars. In all, the fans burned 17 cars, as well as a fire truck, and ultimately, 85 rioters were arrested. | ||
 2012 European Men's Handball Championship riots[21] | After a match between Croatia and France, Serbian hooligans attacked several Croatian fans, including a notable incident where a group of Croatian fans who were heading home were attacked by 50 masked men with axes, stones and bricks, and a fan was stabbed, with a Croatian van being set alight. | ||
 Port Said Stadium riot[22] | In Port Said, Egypt, 79 people were killed by Al-Masry Club fans using knives, swords, clubs, stones, bottles, and fireworks as weapons, who were attacking the Al-Ahly S.C. players. | ||
| 2014 World Series civil unrest | After the San Francisco Giants defeated the Kansas City Royals in the 2014 World Series, Giants fans set fires, vandalized buses and police cars, shattered windows of businesses, scrawled graffiti, and threw bottles at police. Two people were shot, one person was stabbed, and a police officer was badly hurt from fireworks exploding. 40 arrests were made.[23] [24] | ||
| 2016 World Series | After the Chicago Cubs defeated the Cleveland Indians in the 2016 World Series, 14 people were arrested for disorderly and reckless conduct. | ||
| Super Bowl LII | When the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII, fans in Philadelphia reportedly flipped 1 car, tore down traffic lights outside Philadelphia City Hall, and collapsed an awning outside a city hotel. On the same night, 6 fans of the New England Patriots were arrested in Amherst, Massachusetts.[25] [26] | ||
| UEFA Euro 2020 | On the day of the UEFA Euro 2020 final between Italy and England riots broke out at the entrance to Wembley Stadium shortly after kick off, and after the match in Piccadilly Circus, Leicester Square and Trafalgar Square. A McDonalds was looted, a Burger King was looted and a Portuguese flag was burnt in Leicester Square. 86 people were arrested by police that day.[27] [28] [29] [30] [31] [32] | ||
 Querétaro–Atlas riot | During a match between Querétaro F.C. and Atlas F.C., supporters from both clubs erupted into violence at the second half, causing the match to be suspended.[33] [34] | ||
| 2023 NCAA Division I men's basketball championship game | After the UConn Huskies defeated the San Diego State Aztecs in the 2023 NCAA Division I men's basketball championship game, 16 people were hospitalized and 22 people were arrested after a riot broke out on the University of Connecticut campus. Fans flipped cars and started fires, in addition to tearing down light poles and using them as battering rams to break into campus buildings.[35] [36] | ||