Mayor of Bruges: “Mounted police, drones and water cannons in the city – We all know the reputation of PAOK fans”

Special attention to all residents of the city recommended the mayor of Bruges in today’s statements on a Belgian website.

Dirk De Fou asked the residents to call the police for everything that happens, the owners of restaurants and other shops respectively, to inform the Authorities and underlined that strict measures have been taken.

As he mentioned on the streets throughout the day there will be police on horseback, drones and water cannons if they need to intervene.

“We are well prepared to ensure that everything works safely. We do know the reputation of PAOK supporters and we should be careful. They come with 1,500 people, but this number could increase due to people without a ticket. Hence, it will be a bit difficult for our police to keep these people under control and away from the stadium. Fans are also known for using sparklers. So everyone should be thoroughly investigated.”he said and added about the security measures.

“However, we have made a combination agreement. Fans usually gather at the Grote Markt, but are picked up at ‘t Zand by buses that drop them off at the stadium. We hope that fans will respect this arrangement and not go to the stadium alone. In such a case, confrontations may arise. There will also be mounted police, a drone to monitor everything, there will be water cannons in case of riots and we will also be assisted by police forces outside the Bruges zone.”



Finally he pointed out…

“We are already well prepared to ensure that everything runs safely. This is a risk race that is estimated to be slightly higher than the risk races in the Belgian championship. But I have complete confidence in our police services.”