Over 200 Napoli fans banned from attending PSV match on Tuesday evening

The 234 football supporters who were arrested in Eindhoven ahead of the PSV-Napoli UEFA Champions League game on Tuesday evening will not be permitted entry to the match, the police announced on Tuesday afternoon. They have also been issued a 24-hour area ban for the city center.

Among those arrested were 230 Napoli fans and four PSV fans. The police did not disclose how many of them held tickets for the game.

“Because a possible confrontation between supporters of both clubs could not be ruled out, the group was closely monitored,” the police said. Following acts of provocative behavior, the supporters were taken into custody. After questioning, all were released, each receiving a fine.

Napoli fans have a reputation for violence in European away games. A total of 105 supporters of the club were arrested before the Champions League game against Ajax in Amsterdam in 2022. The club’s reputation prompted Eindhoven’s local authorities to label the match a “highest-category risk” event and designate certain parts of the city as security risk zones, giving police the authority to carry out preventive searches.

Fabio, 50, one of the supporters, described the arrests to the Italian news agency ANSA. “We had come into the city by car to have a beer, but as soon as we entered a parking lot, the police surrounded us. They searched us and demanded our identification, even though we hadn’t done anything. They then detained us and treated us like actual criminals.”

He added that the supporters were taken to the police station after being detained. “Just when it seemed like it was finally over, they literally took us to a local police station and questioned us without a lawyer present.”

On the field, Napoli have won one of their two Champions League games this season. The club secured the Italian Serie A championship last season for the fourth time in their history. PSV drew their most recent match with Bayer Leverkusen after a loss to Belgian side Royale Union Saint-Gilloise in the competition.