Scores of English football supporters were arrested in Luxembourg after a night of serious violence on November 16, 1983. The fans were held for drunkenness, fighting and stealing after England was knocked out of the European Championship in spite of beating Luxembourg. Denmark's victory over Greece earlier in the day meant England finished second in their group and did not qualify for the finals the following year.
The fans were not placated by a 4-0 win over Luxembourg and trouble started inside the stadium during which two police officers were badly hurt. Afterwards England supporters tore through the city centre overturning cars and smashing shop windows. About 500 police officers and 150 soldiers were on duty in an attempt to head off trouble. They were hoping to prevent a repeat of violent disturbances in 1977 when England fans also ran riot.
The omens had not been good with trouble flaring before many of the 2,000 fans even reached their destination. On Tuesday a mob of Englishmen beat up a railway employee in Belgium and four police officers needed hospital treatment after fighting broke out among drunken fans who got off a ferry in Ostend. At the height of the night's violence riot police from neighbouring West Germany had to be drafted in to help the over-stretched Luxembourg forces. Weapons seized included axes and aerosol cans filled with tear gas. Many England supporters spent the night on the streets because local hotels refused to take them in. Finally they were herded to the railway station by the security forces where a train, brought forward by five hours, waited to take them to the ferry port in Ostend, Belgium.
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