A large crowd tried to gain entry to the Paul Biya stadium in the Cameroonian capital Yaoundé before the match to watch the host country play. As a result, panic has broken out and at least six people have died. Photos on social media show that children are also among the victims. They lay, possibly unconscious, on the ground in front of the stadium entrances.
Authorities say the death toll could rise as many injured. According to initial counts, some 50,000 people had attempted to attend the match. The stadium has a capacity of 60,000 spectators, but due to Covid restrictions, it was only allowed to be 80 percent full. This created a kind of stampede in front of the gates.
Despite the unrest, the match started at the scheduled time and was played out as normal. Cameroon won met 2-1 and qualified for the quarterfinals. Presumably, at that time, the players were not aware of the drama that took place before kick-off.
