Serbia v Albania abandoned following mass brawl after drone flies over stadium carrying Albanian flag
Referee Martin Atkinson abandons Euro 2016 qualifier in Belgrade following a brawl between players and fans from both sides
Disgrace: A brawl between Serbian and Albanian players and fans led to the qualifier being abandoned Photo: EPA
9:32PM BST 14 Oct 2014
Serbia's Euro
2016 qualifier against Albania was abandoned on Tuesday evening
after a drone flown over the Partizan Stadium pitch carrying the
pro-Albanian banner led to a clash between the two sets of players.
The Group I game erupted into controversy shortly before half-time in Belgrade
when the drone, apparently flown in by remote control from fans outside the
stadium, was brought down by a couple of Serbia players.
That seemed to upset a number of Albania players, several of whom attempted to
intercept the black banner, which contained the Albanian flag in the centre.
It prompted a melee involving numerous players and forced English referee
Martin Atkinson to lead the players off the field, after some disruption off
the pitch as well.
There were no signs of play being restarted more than half an hour after the
suspension, with Uefa then confirming the match had been abandoned.
"The match has been abandoned due to a disturbance on the pitch," said a statement on UEFA's official website.
The tie was goalless at the time of the suspension with the visitors appearing to gain the upper hand when a drone was flown into the stadium.
There seemed to be no immediate threat to the match, with numerous players taking a drinks break as the drone flew harmlessly over the pitch.
However, that changed when Mitrovic attempted to bring down the banner that was attached to the drone, which infuriated some of the Albania players.
Following a skirmish, the situation appeared to escalate as the Albanian players were reportedly the target when objects were thrown onto the pitch, which led to Atkinson leading the players down the tunnel.
"The match has been abandoned due to a disturbance on the pitch," said a statement on UEFA's official website.
The tie was goalless at the time of the suspension with the visitors appearing to gain the upper hand when a drone was flown into the stadium.
There seemed to be no immediate threat to the match, with numerous players taking a drinks break as the drone flew harmlessly over the pitch.
However, that changed when Mitrovic attempted to bring down the banner that was attached to the drone, which infuriated some of the Albania players.
Following a skirmish, the situation appeared to escalate as the Albanian players were reportedly the target when objects were thrown onto the pitch, which led to Atkinson leading the players down the tunnel.
