A group of fans in Argentina jerseys broke through an entry gate at Rio de Janeiro’s Maracana stadium before Argentina’s first World Cup match, revealed an amateur video posted online Monday.
The video showed about 30 fans, many in Argentina jerseys and one wearing a Diego Maradona wig, jumping a wall and crashing through a gate to flood into a restricted area, overwhelming several security guards ahead of Argentina’s game against Bosnia Sunday.
Nine people were arrested over the incident, said the local World Cup organizing committee.
“The people who jumped the wall were captured and handed over to the authorities,” spokesman Saint-Clair Milesi told journalists, calling it an “isolated” incident.
The detainees were released without charge after being booked and put on file.
“We have a request for fans: this is a festive climate — if you don’t have a ticket, you can’t force your way in,” said Milesi.
He said the match, the stadium’s first World Cup game, had otherwise gone well, with a “great atmosphere.”
Argentina beat Bosnia 2-1 in the Group F encounter.
Hundreds of Argentine fans without tickets flocked to the stadium before the game, many looking to buy tickets from touts.
Others watched the match on TV in nearby bars, often complaining of a Brazilian law that forbids alcohol sales near stadiums on match days.