Police ready for action as 100,000 Rangers fans descend on Seville
AROUND 100,000 Rangers fans are expected in Seville for the Europa League final tonight and are estimated to outnumber the Eintracht Frankfurt fans by two to one.
Spain’s commissioner for citizen security said the service was well equipped to handle the tens of thousands of fans arriving in the city.
But Spanish police chiefs have admitted the final represents the “most complicated” challenge they face.
Spanish National Police chief Juan Carlos Castro said the heady mix of sunshine and cold beer could spark booze-fuelled violence, whilst admitting “we’re not going to control anything”.
The first of the 100,000 Rangers fans began to arrive in Seville on Monday to start partying in temperatures due to peak at 95F (35C) at midday today.
It is expected the temperature will still be around 62F (17C) by kick-off .
Last night, pubs and restaurants across the city were packed with fans – the terraces flooded with seas of red, white, and blue and orange.
Rangers fans believe they have a real shot at European glory for the first time in 50 years when they take on the Germans tonight.
Spanish government officials revealed yesterday more than 5,500 police and private security guards would be mobilised as part of an unprecedented security operation in Seville.
They include riot squad officers and bomb disposal experts as well as a unit tasked with monitoring social media for terrorist threats.
Police chief Castro admitted the effect of alcohol on the behaviour of both sets of fans was a concern.
Castro, referencing the huge numbers of fans from both sides expected in Seville, said: “It’s a barbarity. We will try to control things but we’re conscious we’re not going to control anything.
“When there’s a smaller amount of supporters, especially at games where those arriving mostly have tickets to get into the ground, it’s easier because the clubs themselves and the supporters’ clubs control things like the flights, coaches and trains.
“Obviously we’re controlling flights and trains, we know the timetables and we know they’re mostly occupied by foreigners who are most likely to be coming to watch the football.
“But when it comes to coaches and private vehicles, we obviously haven’t got that level of control.”
On the issue of alcohol Mr Castro, said: “Generally speaking both sets of supporters like to drink a lot.
“f in their countries they drink warm beer, in Seville they’ll be drinking even more because here the lager is nice and cold.”
Authorities have set up fan zones in different parts of the city for the two teams’ supporters where only low-alcohol drinks will be sold.
The fan zone for Rangers supporters is next to La Cartuja stadium, a multipurpose stadium situated on an island in Seville’s Guadalquivir River.
Eintracht’s fan zone is in the scenic area around Prado de San Sebastian.
Rangers fans have been told they can watch the match on a giant screen inside La Cartuja Stadium but no alcohol will be sold there.
The “pre-critical” phase of the security operation began at 8am yesterday and will last until 3pm today.
Mr Castro yesterday confirmed the only incidents overnight had been noise-related.
He added: “Last night police took quite a lot of calls from locals because there were groups of people who were enjoying drinks on open terraces and didn’t want to go at midnight when it was time to close.
“They had to be persuaded to leave and obviously in the early hours of the morning loud voices can be heard more and there were some complaints from residents who were being bothered by the noise. It was no more than that and fortunately there were no real incidents.”
Giovanni van Bronckhorst urged Rangers fans not to leave any negativity in Seville as he prepared his side for the final.
Former managers Ally Mccoist and Graeme Souness this week called for fans to behave themselves.
Some Rangers fans were involved in trouble in Manchester in 2008 but the current boss wants this time to be different.
The former Ibrox player said: “I think it’s not about the numbers. You can bring 50 people and they can bring chaos. I know we have a lot of people travelling with us and enjoying the final.
“We have to enjoy this occasion. We as managers, players, staff and fans inside and outside the stadium, it’s not often you get to reach a European final.
“It’s not just for Rangers, it’s also for Frankfurt and we have to enjoy it and make sure we are not causing any problems. Let the game decide who wins this game.
“One half of the people will go home really happy and the other half will go home angry, but we should respect the whole city and all the people who have worked so hard to accommodate us.
“Enjoy it and don’t leave anything negative behind.”
David Graham, director of communications at Rangers and a board member, said: “It’s worth saying that we are grateful for the engagement with the Spanish police, with the police back in the UK as well as the Government in the UK.
“We are confident we have done a significant amount of engagement. We had a security team, a football operations team, out here last week.
“We know our fans will get out and make a noise and we know they will behave themselves and represent the club well.”
We will try to control things but we’re conscious we’re not going to control anything