FILE – Palmeiras’ forward Artur (2-R) and teammates after scoring a goal during the Copa Libertadores group stage second leg football match between Brazil’s Palmeiras and Ecuador’s Barcelona a the Allianz Parque stadium in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on June 7, 2023. (Photo by NELSON ALMEIDA / AFP)
A 23-year-old woman died Monday after a glass bottle severed her jugular vein in a brawl between fans of two Brazilian football clubs in Sao Paulo over the weekend, her family said.
Gabriela Anelli’s brother Felipe announced her death on Instagram, thanking well-wishers for their prayers since she was hospitalized Saturday after being hurt in a fight between supporters of her favorite club, Palmeiras, and visiting rivals Flamengo.
The altercation took place outside the Allianz Parque stadium where the two teams were playing a match, according to police.
Anelli was near a fan zone where Palmeiras supporters were eating and drinking when passing Flamengo supporters started hurling stones and glass bottles in their direction, said Cesar Saad, a police official who specializes in sports-related crimes.
She was hit and her jugular vein was cut, he told the Canal do Benja YouTube channel, adding that the Flamengo supporter who threw the bottle was arrested and has admitted guilt.
In a statement, the Palmeiras club called the attack an act of “barbarism.”
It expressed solidarity with the Anelli family and demanded a speedy investigation “of this crime.”
Pepper spray used by police to separate the brawling fans wafted into the stadium and caused Saturday’s game to be stopped twice. It ended in a 1-1 draw.