WORLD CUP USA ’94 / THE FIRST ROUND : SPOTLIGHT : IT’S HOTTER IN BELGIUM THAN IN ORLANDO
Fans of the Belgian and Moroccan teams coexisted loudly but peacefully Sunday under steamy conditions in Orlando, Fla.
Banners were displayed in Flemish, English and French, and fans waved the red, yellow and black Belgian flag with more energy than their team showed on the field.
Fans of Morocco, many dressed in the team’s red color, also chanted, banged drums and waved the red Moroccan flag with the gold star in the middle.
At game’s end, there seemed to be no incidents in the stands. But in Belgium, a Moroccan youth was shot and wounded in the southern town of Verviers when celebrations of Belgium’s victory turned violent. The youth was reportedly not in serious condition.
There are about 200,000 Moroccans living in Belgium, about 20,000 of them in Brussels, where fighting also broke out between rival supporters on the historic Grand’Place.
Police said some cars were damaged and shop windows smashed in central Brussels. There was no news of any arrests.
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