Ajax have condemned a firework display that led to the abandonment of their Eredivisie match against Groningen at the Johan Cruyff Arena. Referee Bas Nijhuis halted play within five minutes of kick-off after fireworks and flares were ignited behind one goal, filling the stadium with smoke.
An attempt to restart the match 45 minutes later was met with further fireworks, forcing Nijhuis to formally abandon the game. Ajax released a statement calling the incident “utterly outrageous” and apologising to those affected, emphasising that the safety of spectators and players had been put at risk.
The club said: “Ajax considers what happened in the stadium this evening to be utterly outrageous. We offer our apologies to everyone who has been affected in any way. The safety of spectators and players has been put at risk. That is unacceptable. We emphatically distance ourselves from this misconduct. Fireworks do not belong in the stadium.”
