Toronto FC punishes its supporters after fans light stadium on fire

Jul 20 2018, 3:36 am

A few bad apples look to have spoiled the whole bunch, as Toronto FC has announced that they will be suspending all “recognized supporter group privileges” indefinitely.

A group of traveling TFC fans lit their section on fire during Wednesday’s Canadian Championship semi-final match in Ottawa. Some banners appeared to catch fire, while a couple of flares were tossed onto the field of play.

There was even a loud explosion.

Smoke plumed and play was stopped to deal with the incident. A fire extinguisher was brought in to quickly stop the threat, though the incident was a black eye for Toronto FC supporters.

“The safety of our fans, employees and supporters is the highest priority for TFC,” said Toronto FC President Bill Manning in a statement. “The events which took place in Ottawa last night involving TFC supporters were unacceptable and needlessly put the safety of others at risk.

“Due to the seriousness of this incident, we are left with no choice but to suspend all recognized supporter group privileges indefinitely as we conduct a thorough review of TFC’s recognized supporter program. We are fully cooperating with the Ottawa Police Department as they investigate this incident and work to identify those responsible.”

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