Wild Football Brawl Ends With 17 Red Cards as Police Forced to Use Tear Gas

A quarter-final clash in the Copa Bolivia descended into chaos as 17 red cards were issued by referee Renan Castillo following a brawl that forced South American police to use tear gas.

Club Blooming booked their place in the Copa Bolivia semi-finals this week as they recorded a 4-3 aggregate win over fellow Bolivian Primera Division side Real Ocuro.

After winning the first leg 2-1, Blooming managed to secure their spot in the semis with a 2-2 draw, although Mauricio Soria's side were unable to celebrate on the pitch at full-time.

Instead, tempers flared between both sets of players and a violent brawl proceeded to overshadow the cup tie, with staff members and players throwing punches at each other.

As per Bolivian outlet El Potosi, it all kicked off when Real Oruro's Sebastian Zeballos had to be held back by a number of Blooming players, which ended in a pushing match.

Zeballos' teammate Julio Vila is then said to have thrown punches that triggered the massive brawl, as Oruro coach Marcelo Robledo was pushed over after being confronted by another coach.

Robledo was reportedly hospitalised with a shoulder injury and a blow to his head.

As you can see in the footage below, a group of 20 police officers had to intervene as they used tear gas to stop the violence. Eventually, Soria managed to gather his Blooming players into the dressing room.

In total, the referee brandished 17 red cards after the full-time whistle, with seven being handed to Blooming players and four to Ocuro. Members of staff from both teams also received a red card.

Blooming players Gabriel Valverde, Richet Gomez, Roberto Melgar, Franco Posse, Cesar Romero and Luis Suarez were all carded for violent conduct and will miss the rest of their Copa Bolivia campaign.

Julio Vila, who is said to be one of the players that started the brawl, received a red card for Oruro alongside teammates Raul Gomez, Yerco Vallejos and Eduardo Alvarez.

A report from Bolivian publication Vision360 suggests an official from Blooming suffered a fractured cheekbone during the chaos.

Further punishments could be handed out after referee Renán Castillo sent a report to the Sports Disciplinary Tribunal in Bolivia.