At the end of a thrilling Brazilian football game on Sunday, a thug stormed onto the pitch and kicked a player while holding a small child in his arms.
After a large brawl broke out at the conclusion of the match between Internacional and Caxias, television cameras caught the brazen attack.
Caxias, a team from Caxias do Sul in southern Brazil, had just defeated Porto Alegre’s Internacional on penalties when the scandalous events took place.
The video shows the Estadio Beira-Rio, Internacional’s home stadium, erupting in fury as the Caxias player put the ball past the goalkeeper and celebrated the victory by cupping his hands to his ears.
Internacional players and team staff can be seen chasing the Caxias players around the ground, cheered on by their baying home supporters, all while stewards meekly attempt to bring the escalating situation under control.
Several clashes between the rival players and staff are seen breaking out across the pitch and the sidelines, with punches and kicks flying in from all directions.
A number of players from both teams are shown being taken to the ground.
As the cameras zoom in on one particular flash point, one fan is seen carrying a young girl – presumed to be his daughter – on to the pitch, wading into the fray with seemingly little consideration for the safety of the child.
As stewards attempt to hold him back, the Internacional fan walks up behind a Caxias player who is facing the other way.
The player is helping another who is seen clutching his face, his nose visibly wound having been struck in the mass brawl.
Suddenly, the furious thug kicks up powerfully between the other player’s legs.
Two teammates of the Caxias player rush in to defend him, but quickly realise that the man is carrying the young girl – and hesitate, seemingly out of confusion.
One of the players is seen trying to warn the other angry teammates about the young girl, and the trio are able to restrain themselves from going after the thug.
The footage cuts to another on-pitch camera, which zooms in on the man’s face.
With a furious look in his eyes, he is seen being dragged away by three stewards.
The young girl is visibly terrified as she is buffeted about, as the man is pulled away back towards the stands where he first appeared from.
The mass brawl was an acrimonious end to the match that also saw a red card and finished 1-1, before going on to be decided by a penalty shootout.
The match was a fixture from the Campeonato Gaúcho, the state football league of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul – which is separate from Brazil’s Série A – the country’s top division which Internacional also compete in.
Last season, Internacional finished second in Série A – suggesting that Caxias were the underdogs in the hotly-contested fixture. Nevertheless, Caxias came out on top, and will be competing in the final of Campeonato Gaúcho next week.
The incident was not the first time a fan from Internacional has been involved in a violent incident. In February last year, a footballer from Gremio – a fierce rival to Internacional – has taken to hospital after being hit in the head by a rock.