The international friendly between Germany and the Netherlands in Hannover has been called off. The Hannover Police force confirmed this at 19:20 CET, around an hour and half before the planned kick-off time. "The game has been cancelled," said a police spokesman. The supporters were asked to leave the ground quickly but not to panic. The stadium in Hannover was evacuated.
Die Mannschaft was on the way to the Arena when the cancellation was announced and were turned back and escorted to a safe place under police protection.
Police: “There were concrete plans to set off an explosion”
Volker Kluwe, the chief inspector of the Hannover police force told ARD that "the whole of Hannover was in danger," and went on to say that an explosion had been planned in the HDI Arena. "There were serious plans to set off an explosion." The stadium was evacuated quickly and is now empty.
"Follow-up measures are now being implemented," said Kluwe. "The teams and the officials are safe. Our advice to all the fans is to go home. We do not know what else the same people may have planned around the city. That’s why we’re keeping a close eye on things all over the city."
Highest security levels after Paris terror attacks
Around an hour before the planned kick-off, the police closed off a part of the stadium after finding a suspicious item. Extensive safety precautions at first led to the ‘all clear’ being given. "The suspicious item on the Robert-Enke Street turned out to not be of a dangerous nature," said the Hannover police at the time.
Four days after the Paris terror attacks, there were to be no risks taken ahead of the friendly between Germany and the Netherlands, and so the game was called off.
The international friendly between Germany and the Netherlands in Hannover has been called off. The Hannover Police force confirmed this at 19:20 CET, around an hour and half before the planned kick-off time. "The game has been cancelled," said a police spokesman. The supporters were asked to leave the ground quickly but not to panic. The stadium in Hannover was evacuated.
Die Mannschaft was on the way to the Arena when the cancellation was announced and were turned back and escorted to a safe place under police protection.
Police: “There were concrete plans to set off an explosion”
Volker Kluwe, the chief inspector of the Hannover police force told ARD that "the whole of Hannover was in danger," and went on to say that an explosion had been planned in the HDI Arena. "There were serious plans to set off an explosion." The stadium was evacuated quickly and is now empty.
"Follow-up measures are now being implemented," said Kluwe. "The teams and the officials are safe. Our advice to all the fans is to go home. We do not know what else the same people may have planned around the city. That’s why we’re keeping a close eye on things all over the city."
Highest security levels after Paris terror attacks
Around an hour before the planned kick-off, the police closed off a part of the stadium after finding a suspicious item. Extensive safety precautions at first led to the ‘all clear’ being given. "The suspicious item on the Robert-Enke Street turned out to not be of a dangerous nature," said the Hannover police at the time.
Four days after the Paris terror attacks, there were to be no risks taken ahead of the friendly between Germany and the Netherlands, and so the game was called off.
