DFB Sports Court Fines HSV and St. Pauli After Pyro Scandal at Hamburg Derby

Course of the Derby and Consequences in the Stadium

At the Hamburg city derby on January 23, the second leg of the Bundesliga match at the Millerntor Stadium, supporters from both sides massively burned pyrotechnics. Due to the heavy smoke development, the second half could only be kicked off with a delay of almost six minutes. The match ended 0-0.

In addition to the delay in the restart, the Sports Court considered the safety in the stadium to be significantly impaired by the smoke clouds and the uncontrolled burning of pyrotechnics. The court's reasoning also indicates that the scale of the incident significantly drove up the penalty assessment.

Reactions and Further Proceedings

According to the announcement, both clubs have the right to appeal their respective judgments. Further possible consequences, such as partial stadium block closures, will be decided by the Sports Court in a separate procedure, as was learned from association circles.

With the sanctions now imposed, the DFB is reacting to a series of pyro incidents in the current season, which led to game interruptions in several stadiums. The association had recently announced that it would take a more consistent approach against the use of pyrotechnics in fan blocks.

Discussions with fan representatives are also scheduled for HSV and FC St. Pauli in the coming weeks. Both clubs emphasized after the verdict that they wanted to intensify cooperation with their active fan scenes to prevent future incidents. Neither of the two clubs initially wanted to make a final statement on the appeal issue.

The next encounter between the two Hamburg clubs is not scheduled until the coming season. Until then, both clubs must provide proof of their prevention projects – otherwise, the reallocated penalty portions risk forfeiture.