By any standard, last Saturday’s heated Scandinavian derby between Denmark and Sweden was an ugly affair, but the manner in which the match was abandoned was especially shocking considering the countries’ proud history for having peaceful fans. Nevertheless, it was Denmark that imploded. With the match tied 3-3 in the 89th minute, FC Sevilla defender Christian Poulsen nonsensically sucker-punched a Swedish attacker away from the play. Rightly so, referee Herbert Fandel awarded a penalty in addition to the red card, but then, an enraged Denmark fan ran onto the field and tried to hit Fandel with a clothesline, but he missed thanks to the effort of several Danish players. A few minutes later, Fandel abandoned the match; the penalty was never taken.
Denmark was fined nearly $82,000 for the incident and have been forced to play their next four home games at least 150 miles away from Copenhagen. They were also forced to officially concede the match 3-0, which is a shame, because that’s precisely the score from which the Danes fought back to parity in the second half. Poulsen was also suspended for three games for violent conduct. The defeat and the stadium ban have all but dashed Denmark’s hope of reaching Euro 2008. The Danish soccer federation is expected to appeal, but surely it can’t expect much.
Incidentally, both Poulsen and the Danish fan issued public apologies after the match. “I would like to apologize to my teammates and the general public,” Poulsen said. “It’s the most stupid thing I’ve ever done.” The unidentified fan said nearly the same thing: “I want to apologize to Denmark, Sweden and the referee for my inhuman behavior.”