British soccer fans clashed with police and...

British soccer fans clashed with police and one another in several cities on the closing day of soccer season, leaving dozens injured and more than 80 people arrested, authorities said.

The worst violence was in the south coast resort town of Bournemouth, where hometown fans clashed Friday night and Saturday with police and visiting fans from Leeds.

At least 50 people were arrested and charged with assault, criminal damage or public order offenses, police said early today. At least 20 people, including six police officers, were hurt, police said.

In the hours before Saturday’s game, 2,000 fans--many without tickets or with forged tickets--began showering police with rocks, bricks and bottles and threatening Bournemouth players. Police brought in reinforcements from as far away as London, 95 miles away.

The trouble began the night before the match, when about 100 soccer fans set fire to Bournemouth’s famous pier and smashed windows at a posh shopping arcade. About 300 others attacked workers and customers at a seaside pub and tore apart furniture, authorities said.

At Chesterfield, just south of Sheffield, 12 people were taken to the hospital and others were treated at the stadium after clashes between rival fans and police. None of the injuries was said to be serious, but there were 30 arrests.