- A 23-year-old Brazilian woman has died after being hit by a glass bottle thrown during a brawl between football fans.
- Gabriela Anelli was queuing outside the stadium in Sao Paulo on Saturday when she was struck in the neck.
- She was taken to hospital in a serious condition but died two days later.
A 23-year-old Brazilian woman has died after being hit by a glass bottle thrown during a brawl between football fans.
Gabriela Anelli was queuing outside the Allianz Parque stadium in Sao Paulo on Saturday 8th July 2023 when she was struck in the neck.
She was taken to hospital in a serious condition but died two days later.
The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) has said it will work with the federal government and other relevant bodies to stop “criminal and sad episodes like this from happening again”.
A minute’s silence will be observed at all games in the 15th round of the Brazilian championship in honour of Anelli, the CBF announced.
“Football is passion and not a space for the action of criminals infiltrating the fans to practise all kinds of violence,” the CBF said in a statement.
Arsenal’s Brazilian striker Gabriel Jesus was among those to pay tribute to Anelli, calling the incident “a sad day for Brazilian football”.
“My thoughts are with Gabriela’s family and friends,” Jesus said on Twitter. “This is a tragedy that should never have happened.”
The incident is the latest in a series of violent clashes between football fans in Brazil.
In 2013, a 19-year-old fan was killed after being stabbed during a match between Flamengo and Vasco da Gama.
And in 2015, a 21-year-old fan was killed after being shot during a match between Corinthians and Palmeiras.
The Brazilian government has said that it is committed to tackling violence at football matches.
In 2016, the government introduced a new law that increased the penalties for violence at football matches. The law also made it easier for the police to identify and prosecute fans who commit violence.
