THE antics of some unruly Kelantan fans during the Malaysia Cup final on Saturday has resulted in dama-ges amounting to RM214,000, said Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek.
Checks by the National Stadium management revealed that 224 seats were broken, toppled or burned by supporters.
Several stadium entrance gates and a public toilet at the car park were also damaged.
“Each stadium seat costs RM500, which means that the damage to the seats alone is RM112,000. The total damage incurred was RM214,000.
“This amount will have to be deducted from ticket sales and sponsorship,” Shabery said in reply to points raised during his winding-up speech on his ministry.
Shabery said he was happy with the large turnout of fans from Kelantan and Negri Sembilan who gave their strong support to the teams.
“However, I’m unhappy with fans who had caused the damage and marred the country’s image.
“Those who did those things should remember that they are damaging things which are paid through public taxes, or from their own pockets,” he added.
Shabery was responding to Datuk Ibrahim Ali (Independent – Pasir Mas) who asked the authorities to prevent football violence from getting worse.
It was reported that the Football Association of Malaysia was expected to take stern action against Kelan-tan for their fans’ unruly behaviour during the final.
Some of the 65,000 Kelantan fans, unhappy over their team’s 3-1 defeat to Negri Sembilan, vented their frustration by letting off fireworks and smoke bombs.
Some even set fire to the plastic seats at the stadium.
In a press conference at the Parlia-ment lobby later, Shabery said the situation at the National Stadium during the football game turned chaotic when it rained at about 4pm several hours before the gates to the stadium were opened.
He said officials had to open the gates earlier when the fans started breaking the door.
Even the tickets could not be checked and some fans entered without them, he added.
Shabery said the success of a sport is closely related to the audience’s participation.
“The success of sports activities in the United States and Europe is due to massive audience participation through ticket purchases, which helps to increase sponsorship and advertisements.
“This revenue finances the players’ income and other sports facilities.
“Stadiums in the United Kingdom are managed by corporations, not the Government due to high audience attendance,” he added.
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