No fewer than six Guinean supporters lost their lives while celebrating their country’s victory over Gambia at the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations, AFCON in Ivory Coast.
Fans died on wild celebration by driving cars and riding motorcycles on the streets of Conakry, the captial of Guinea.
Guinea defeated the Gambia 1-0 on Friday night, boosting their chances of making the knock-out stage of the tournament.
The Guinean Football Federation, Feguifoot, told the BBC on Monday that three people died when two vehicles collided at high speed, while others were injured in road accidents.
He said: “What is important is that our fans and the public celebrate in a very measured fashion,” Feguifoot media manager Amadou Makadji told BBC Sport Africa.
“They have to be very careful to not put themselves in danger, because the goal of football is to bring joy and not leave families bereaved. We do not want deaths to mourn, so we call on everyone to celebrate but to take care of themselves so that nothing happens to them.
“Guinea is a country where people are very, very passionate about football and they experience football like nowhere else in the world,” Makadji noted.
Meanwhile, Guinea legend Pascal Feindouno, who helped the national team reach three quarter-finals between 2004 and 2008, urged the fans to remain calm.
The 42-year-old said: “I have a message to send to Guinean men and women.
“Rest assured that we will do something at the Nations Cup but we have learned something that will destabilise us. We learned there were deaths after the victory against The Gambia – we want this to stop because we are here to defend the colours of the country.
“Everything is going well for us at the moment so support the country but don’t do anything to kill each other or oneself. Stay calm – thank you,” he said.
