Dozens, including children, killed in stampede following clashes at a Guinea soccer match

CONAKRY, Guinea (AP) — Dozens of soccer fans, including children, were killed in a stampede that followed clashes during a soccer match in southern Guinea’s largest city, local media and a political coalition reported late Sunday.

The stampede broke out on Sunday afternoon at the Nzerekore city during a local tournament between the Labe and Nzerekore teams in honor of Guinea’s military leader, Mamadi Doumbouya, Guinea’s Prime Minister Amadou Oury Bah said on the X platform.

“During the stampede, victims were recorded,” Bah said, without further details about the casualties. The regional authorities are working to restore calm in the area, he added.

The stampede resulted in dozens of deaths and injuries, according to the National Alliance for Alternation and Democracy, a coalition of political parties, which called for an investigation.

Local media reported the chaos followed a disputed penalty that angered fans, many of them clashing and pouring onto the open soccer field at the crowded stadium.

Among the victims were children, according to the local Media Guinea and videos that appeared to be from the scene. Media Guinea said some of the injured being treated at a regional hospital are in critical condition.