Violent clashes took place today (16/11) in Sofia between Bulgarian fans and the police during the EURO 2024 qualifier Bulgaria-Hungary, which is being played behind closed doors for security reasons.

Police and fans were injured, Bulgaria’s interior ministry said in a statement, also citing arrests without elaborating.

In fact, the police used water cannons to disperse the crowd of about 2,000 people, who gathered from all over the country demanding the resignation of the president of the Federation, Borislav Mihailov, who has been in charge for 18 years.

Firecrackers, bottles and even stones were used by the angry protesters, who also set fire to a police vehicle, incidents that are rare in this Balkan country.

Anger among fans continues to grow at the disappointing results of the national team, which has failed to qualify for any major competition and has changed coach 18 times in the past two decades. Bulgaria’s last appearance in a major tournament dates back to 2004, when it competed at the EURO in Portugal.

The 60-year-old president of the Bulgarian Football Federation (BFU) resigned in 2019 before taking back his decision.

He was eventually re-elected in 2021, despite suspicions of his involvement in match-fixing and a racial abuse scandal during a match against England in 2019.

With just two points, Bulgaria is in last place in the 7th qualifying group for EURO 2024.