HE Match between Belgium and Sweden teamsCoinciding with the qualifying phase of Euro 2024 and held in Brussels, did not reboot An incident broke out after the first half ended for security reasons after two people died with firearms in a square in the capital before the match. The Belgian team confirmed on their official ‘X’ profile that “The match has been postponed due to the events that took place in Brussels tonight. Our thoughts are with everyone affected”, while UEFA also mentioned “security reasons”.
The Swedish team published a message to its fans saying “We are in Brussels”. “Belgian police want Swedish fans to remain in the stadium for security reasons. Please stay calm and look out for each other. Our thoughts are with all the affected relatives in Brussels.” he emphasized.
Sweden captain Victor Lindelof said he spoke to “all the players how they felt” and then “explained” how they saw the situation with the Belgian players. “We made it very clear that we did not want to continue playing the game.. We explained this (to the Belgian players) and they completely agreed,” he said in statements on the website of Swedish newspaper ‘Aftonbladet’.
“Those who had family or friends here wanted to reach them directly and find out if they were okay. I think our security team handled the issue very well and explained the situation to us. They calmed us down and said this was the safest place. They are now in Brussels. Even though people are worried, we feel quite comfortable here.” We feel safe,” the centre-back said.
Swedish coach Janne Andersson stated that they learned the tragic news “in the first half”. “We were very upset and the players didn’t want to play anymore. What world do we live in? There have been so many victims of gun violence lately,” he lamented.
According to the news of the Belgian newspaper ‘La Derniere Heure’, the Swedish football players decided not to return to the field due to the events that took place around 19:00, which would have accepted the local team’s request. The match ended 1-1 according to the scoreboard. Neither team played much Since Belgium had mathematically qualified for the EURO and Sweden had run out of options for victory hours before Austria.
The following statements were made on the same newspaper’s website: Starting from 23.50, King Baudouin Stadium fans, including more than 600 Swedes, began to leave the stadium., after establishing a security perimeter around the facility and receiving a police escort. Swedish Association President Fredrik Reinfeldt, who is also the country’s former prime minister, asked fans not to wear “yellow T-shirts”.
Belgian Royal House ‘horrified’
The Belgian Royal Family is “horrified” by an attack in Brussels that killed at least two Swedish citizens and injured another, claimed by a self-described member of the Islamic State terrorist group. His aim would be to “take revenge on the Muslims”. “We are shocked by the armed attack that affected our capital this afternoon. Our thoughts are primarily with the victims, their families and loved ones. We express our support to the security forces who are doing everything possible to catch the perpetrator of these acts. “The Belgian Royal House, social network X’, formerly known as Twitter He testified in his account.
Sweden’s security services had already raised the anti-terrorism alert level in August. They decided to place it in the second highest step, as they felt that the northern country had ceased to be a “legitimate” target in some circles and had become a “priority” target from which to carry out attacks. Sweden remains at level three out of five, but both the Security Service (SAPO) and the Armed Forces have decided to increase it to four, meaning there is a high risk of attacks occurring.
Sweden has also been the center of attention in recent months Burning copies of the QuranIt was echoed by political criticism and demonstrations from Muslim-majority countries.