Standard Liege secured a 3-1 victory against Charleroi in the 33rd round of the Belgian D1 championship, Jupiler Pro League.
However, the match was marred by fan violence when supporters of Charleroi threw painted dead rats onto the pitch, targeting their Walloon rivals.
The incident led to a brief suspension of the match, but the atmosphere remained tense throughout.
Charleroi’s main fan group, the Storm Ultras, were dressed as rat killers and displayed a banner with the words “rat killers” at the game.
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Prior to the match, they had already started a social media campaign comparing Standard Liege to rats. Standard Liege was outraged by the incident, and their supporters’ Facebook page urged the Pro League to take action against the offending fans.
They also expressed hope that animal associations would become involved.
A Standard supporter, who was “disgusted” by the incident, stated that hooded spectators had thrown the rats in the direction of the T2 stand, which included families and people with reduced mobility.
The club is considering bringing the case to the Jupiler Pro League authorities.