Dortmund fan groups boycott Atalanta rematch after “incomprehensible” police checks

Organised fan groups of Dortmund and the club itself have been left appalled by the rigourous security and police checks their fans have faced en route to Bergamo.

Borussia Dortmund’s organised fan groups will not be present in the stadium for Wednesday’s Champions League playoff second leg against Atalanta Bergamo.

According to the ‘Südtribüne Dortmund’ fan group’s statement, “up to 300 supporters were prevented from attending the match at German airports for flimsy reasons.

“This resulted in a veritable ordeal for many fans, culminating in extensive checks and/or further travel bans with reporting requirements, both at the gate and on the plane.”

Fans already in northern Italy were also visited by Italian police at their accommodations. BVB stated in the afternoon that they had not been informed of these measures beforehand.

The club also expressed that they were unaware of any “more detailed background information” regarding these “completely incomprehensible” actions.

The club added it was “more than surprised” by the “reach and scale” of the protests, which represented a novelty “in this form and intensity.”

They “expressly regretted” that this “dubious behavior of the authorities” was leading to a decline in attendance by some of their supporters.