Fans, police clash amid Real Madrid party
Daniel Flynn
Riot police fired rubber bullets to disperse stone-throwing Real Madrid fans as hundreds of thousands of people packed the centre of the Spanish capital to hail the team's record ninth European Cup triumph on Wednesday.
Baton-wielding police charged fans who rained stones and bottles on them near the Cibeles fountain in central Madrid, where Real supporters traditionally celebrate the team's successes, witnesses said.
Some 30 people, including two police officers, were injured and eight fans arrested, a police spokesman said.
Real Madrid's 2-1 win over Bayer Leverkusen in the final at Glasgow's Hampden Park was met with an explosion of celebrations in the Spanish capital.
Car horns blared and fireworks lit the night sky as thousands of jubilant fans streamed into the city centre to toast the win.
But the mood soon soured as groups of fans began hurling rocks, bottles and other debris at thousands of riot police, who were trying to prevent a repetition of the violent disturbances that greeted Real's Champions League victories in 1998 and 2000.
Some fans uprooted litter bins to throw.
Police responded by firing volleys of rubber bullets and charging fans, who taunted them by chanting "champions" at them.
Spanish television showed police examining what appeared to be two bullet holes on the back door of a police van.
Several ambulances, sirens blaring, evacuated injured people from the centre, where some streets were littered with broken glass. At least one car had its windscreen broken.
Police gradually forced fans out of the centre but scattered clashes continued into the early hours.
Victory for Real came in the club's centenary season thanks to goals from Raul and Zinedine Zidane.
Fans were determined to celebrate on the feast day of San Isidro, Madrid's patron saint, and bars were packed with happy fans.
"You've just got to celebrate a win like this," said Jaime, a 21-year-old student who was among the Cibeles crowd.
"When Real Madrid win a title everyone comes down to celebrate."
Francisco Rodriguez, a 29-year-old computer worker in the crowd, paid tribute to the two goalscorers.
"We played brilliantly," he shouted. "Our team has the best players in the world, people like Raul and Zidane. This is the first time I've come down to celebrate."
(Additional reporting by Kevin Fylan)
