Guinea stadium stampede kills 56 people following clashes at soccer match, authorities say

CONAKRY, Guinea (AP) — At least 56 people, including children, have died after fans at a soccer game in Guinea allegedly clashed over a disputed call by the referee, authorities said Monday.

The stampede broke out on Sunday afternoon at the stadium in the city of Nzerekore during the final of a local tournament between the Labe and Nzerekore teams in honor of Guinea’s military leader, Mamadi Doumbouya.

“During the stampede, victims were recorded,” Guinea’s Prime Minister Amadou Oury Bah said on the X platform, without giving details. The regional authorities are working to restore calm in the area, he added.

Local media reports said security forces had tried to use tear gas to restore calm after the chaos that followed a disputed penalty call.

“This (the disputed penalty call) angered supporters who threw stones. This is how the security services used tear gas,” Media Guinea, a local news website, reported. It said several of those killed were children while some of the injured being treated at a regional hospital are in critical condition.

Videos that appeared to be from the scene showed fans in a section of the stadium shouting and protesting the refereeing before clashes broke out as people poured onto the field. People were running as they tried to escape from the stadium, many of them jumping the high fence.

Videos also showed many people lying on the floor in what looked like a hospital as a crowd gathered nearby, some assisting the wounded.

Authorities are conducting an investigation to establish those responsible for the stampede on Sunday, Bah said in a statement that was read on national television.

The National Alliance for Alternation and Democracy opposition coalition said the tournament was organized to drum up support for the “illegal and inappropriate” political ambitions of Doumbouya.

Guinea has been led by the military since soldiers ousted President Alpha Conde in 2021. It is one of a growing number of West African countries, including Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, where the military has taken power and delayed a return to civilian rule.

Doumbouya, who ousted the president three years ago, said he was preventing the country from slipping into chaos and chastised the previous government for broken promises. He has, however, been criticized for not meeting the expectations that he raised.