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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
World
Benedict Tetzlaff-Deas

World Cup chaos in Melbourne as several injured after rowdy fans ignite flares

Three people have been left injured after fans of the Australian national team began throwing flares at an outdoor World Cup screening.

A celebratory mood erupted at Federation Square in Melbourne's city centre on Saturday evening as Mitchell Duke scored in the 23rd minute to give the Socceroos their first win at the tournament since 2010.

Thousands of people could be seen leaping around and embracing as the final whistle was blown, with red pyrotechnics seen creating an impressive red haze around the crowd.

Describing the fervent atmosphere among those gathered in front of the big screen, a fan told Australian TV channel 9 News: "Everyone was hugging and kissing each other, jumping up and down - if there was a roof on Fed Square it would've come off"

Flares were thrown in Federation Square after a screening of the Socceroo's 1-0 victory over Tunisia (9News)

But the joyful scenes were marred by a small group of rowdy supporters after some of the flares and other items were launched into the air and landed on other people in attendance.

Three people were left injured in total, according to police, with one teenager receiving burns on his leg while a 50-year-old woman was left with a cut on her head.

One teenager suffered burns on his leg, while a woman was left with a cut on her head (9News)

A man also suffered cuts to his foot after standing on broken glass.

One video showed a security guard running over as a red flare landed next to people's feet, while in other clips people can be seen dancing in a circle around red flames.

Police are now calling for witnesses to come forward and identify those who may have been involved in the flare-throwing.

Police are now asking for witnesses to come forward (9News)

Over in Europe, riots were reported in several cities on Sunday after Morocco pulled off a shock 2-0 victory against Belgium.

Police detained about a dozen people after rioters torched cars and threw bricks in Brussels, while eight more were arrested in the city of Antwerp.

Two police officers were injured in the Dutch port city of Rotterdam, with disorder related to the match also reported in Amsterdam and The Hague.

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