Romanian soccer fans set fire to grandstands minutes before the start of a match between two rival Bucharest rival teams in one of the worst incidents in the growing problem of post-communist soccer violence.
About 30 fans were arrested but no one was seriously hurt. The match pitting first division Steaua against Dinamo Bucharest was briefly delayed. Steaua eventually won 3-1.Police and soldiers who had been posted to the Steaua stadium in anticipation of trouble evacuated some 2,000 fans and herded them into car parks to find those responsible, officials said.
Marcel Puscas, the Steaua president, said about 700 seats were destroyed after the fire broke out 10 minutes before the derby's scheduled kick-off with about 16,000 fans in attendance.
"After the evacuation, police near the stadium questioned large groups of fans to determine who caused the trouble," Puscas said.