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On Saturday, LASK and FC Blau-Weiss Linz meet again in the Bundesliga for the first time in 26 years. The harbingers of the first Oberhaus derby after a long time between the two rivals can already be seen in the city.
While before the most recent Graz derby between SK Sturm and GAK, fans of the black and white drew attention to themselves with a tasteless action and dangled a red pig carcass (note: based on the red city rival) from a motorway bridge, it happened In the past few days, there has also been a similar incident in Linz: blue and white fabric Smurfs dangled on gallows from the overpass at the Untere Donaulände, graffiti with Smurfs in the crosshairs was smeared on trains. To explain: For the fans from the LASK camp, the comic figures are symbols for the unpopular city rival.
“The two teams are meeting again in the Bundesliga for the first time in 26 years, so the match day is correspondingly emotional,” says operations manager Michael Hubmann from the Linz City Police Command in an OÖN interview. “We are preparing for this with our measures and will do everything we can to to prevent clashes”, the executive casts a close eye on the derby harbingers even before the explosive duel on Saturday.
Blue and white fans collect stuffed animals
The provocations of the LASK fans left the blue and white supporters cold for the time being. They reacted to the “hanged” stuffed Smurfs with an original counterattack. “While the city rival “hangs” stuffed Smurfs on bridges, we decided to collect stuffed animals and donate them to families in need,” says a broadcast by the “Stahlstadt Kollektiv”, the umbrella organization of the blue-and-white fan scene.
At the next Blau-Weiss home game against Rapid Vienna, well-preserved and clean stuffed animals should be taken and handed in at the stadium. They will then be handed over to Volkshilfe Oberösterreich. The “Stahlstadt Kollektiv” continues: “Our solidarity with needy children and families: Stuffed animals belong in the hands of children, not on bridges!”
OEN TV: Sports editor Harald Bartl analyzes the starting position before the Linz derby
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